Tuesday, January 2nd 2018
WHO Classifies Gaming Addiction as a Psychological Disorder
The World Health Organization (WHO) has now officially classified gaming addiction as a disorder, thus being listed as a mental health condition that is diagnosable. The WHO announced the new disorder today, which is bound to be included in the organization's 11th International Classification of Diseases (ICD) guide, which is due to be published this year.
Despite having its inclusion in the ICD confirmed, gaming addiction as a disorder still doesn't have a finalized transcript. It's still in the draft stages, and at this time, gaming addiction is being described as a pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behavior so severe that it takes "precedence over other life interests". From the draft, the WHO is looking at extended diagnosing periods of at least 12 months until it can be confirmed that someone suffers from this disorder, though the diagnosis time frame can be reduced "if symptoms are severe".
Symptoms for this disorder include:
Source:
BBC
Despite having its inclusion in the ICD confirmed, gaming addiction as a disorder still doesn't have a finalized transcript. It's still in the draft stages, and at this time, gaming addiction is being described as a pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behavior so severe that it takes "precedence over other life interests". From the draft, the WHO is looking at extended diagnosing periods of at least 12 months until it can be confirmed that someone suffers from this disorder, though the diagnosis time frame can be reduced "if symptoms are severe".
- impaired control over gaming (frequency, intensity, duration)
- increased priority given to gaming
- continuation or escalation of gaming despite negative consequences
33 Comments on WHO Classifies Gaming Addiction as a Psychological Disorder
Work takes "precedence over other life interests" and I have a habit of persistent or recurrent work behavior. I haven't been able to shake this for years.....even one job I would put in 13-14 hour days.
Not saying gaming is evil bla,bla,bla. Just don't let it consume your entire life. If it does, and you're not a famous youtuber or twitch streamer, then you have a problem.
It also dangerous because longtime exposure will damage your self-valuation. You will start to measure yourself and others in likes and shares while demolishing your private life either through publication or alteration to publicly better recievable.
The reason why I prefer gaming above any other entertainment is because it's unique every time, it doesn't get repeatable and you actively participate in it as anything you want to be. What else is ever so unique? Not sports, not TV series or movies, even social games only tick few of those.
Everyone is their own damn man/woman and deserves the right to do whatever pleases them. It is their own life to live.
You live once; do what makes you happy as long as it doesn't infringe on other people's property or rights.
Screw the WHO.
I've worked many hours a day for years on end, i've gamed many hours a day for years and i do many other things for hours on end so lets just call it all a disorder shell we? MEH FY WHO /spit
Also spent 10000000000000 hours of my life having a laugh with my mate so i guess that should be a disorder? god damn world just F OFFFF with the BS and CBD!!!!!!!!
www.newsweek.com/2014/08/15/korean-couple-let-baby-die-while-they-played-video-game-261483.html
www.thefix.com/content/gaming-addiction-death90412
www.deccanchronicle.com/150908/technology-latest/article/side-effects-deaths-due-caused-video-game-addiction
listverse.com/2010/11/07/top-10-cases-of-extreme-game-addiction/
Seen it myself when playing an MMO beta back in 2004 ... devs announced that they would be wiping all characters the coming weekend and we were all like 95% of max level and estimated we needed about 100 hours over next 5 days to finish; best I could do was about 20. One woman did, but it cost her her job. Just last year saw a player in game who was obsessing about every facet of the game ... collecting data from forums and using it to create his own "guides". He originally started playing the MMO w/ his wife but she left ... and later came back asking for help in getting her husband to stop playing obsessively.
I agree with the concept of do what you enjoy as long as it doesn't hurt yourself or others ... does that include drinking all day ? Does it count gaming if one is skipping work and get fired ? Does it include doing gaming to the exclusion of all other interests ? Is it still OK when one has mood swings making one anti social or violent when they can't game ? Is it still OK when you lost ya job, can't support your family and wife kids are ready to walk ? Know more than one neighborhood kid who redid a year of college because they recognized there C- average wasn't going to get them where they wanted to be.... one i know well managed close to straight A's going forward.
Granted there's other factors ate work here just as two people from the same genetic / environmental pool can grow up where one has alcohol or other substance abuse issues and one doesn't
I consider gaming just an escape from those addictions to be honest, and not an addiction on itself...
You can google for things like "digital detox" or "technology detox". They're usually about smartphones, but may include gaming as well.
Gaming (especially for 10h a day) is not a significant problem in global scale. There aren't that many gamers.How about socializing with other people? :)
Especially since my work requires interaction with people for half a day, every day for basically entire week, I want my time alone. I can't understand this modern obsession/requirement of being an extrovert. Whole world is obsessed with this. Being on social networks is almost depressive because of that alone if you're not within that group of people. Well, some of us just don't like being like that or spending time like that.
You've seen this?
www.theverge.com/2017/11/26/16701950/substitute-phoneklemens-schillinger-smartphone-addictionAnd I totally agree. I also need some time alone. But playing games for 10h a day - at the cost of socializing, sleeping or working - is a problem. It's the "at the cost of" part that turns a habit or a hobby into an addiction.Isn't it just a result of Internet?
20 years ago people met to say what they've bought last weekend. Some people like to talk for hours about new shoes, some don't.
With Internet, you don't need friends to talk about your shoes. You just need followers. But it's better to have friends.
I also don't think it's fair to call it a psychological disorder associated with gaming. People have a kind of psychological disorder, but gaming is probably their outlet. The people who kill/harm others over gaming related subjects have a fundamental mental issue, but games are not the cause, merely the chosen object that they pour themselves into. It's got very little different to those people that feel the need to brush their teeth til they bleed and feel astronomically uncomfortable when something prevents them from doing it.
Source - I studied Psychology for four years.