What does the research say about video game addiction? Is it real?
TEACHERS: Get your students in the discussion on KQED Learn, a safe place for middle and high school students to investigate controversial topics and share their voices. https://learn.kqed.org/topics/13
As the video game Fortnite is taking over the world, there’s a rising panic that some gamers are getting full-on addicted, with headlines like “Parenting the Fortnite Addict” and “I almost lost my sons to Fortnite” popping up all over the place. Even the World Health Organization is worried about video games — just recently, it officially recognized “Gaming Disorder” as a mental health condition. But it’s not that simple. The American Psychiatric Association isn’t convinced, and says there’s not enough research showing that video game addiction is its own disorder. So what’s going on? Is video game addiction REALLY a thing?
ABOVE THE NOISE is a show that cuts through the hype and investigates the research behind controversial and trending topics in the news. Hosted by Myles Bess.
*NEW VIDEOS EVERY OTHER WEDNESDAY*
SUBSCRIBE by clicking the RED BUTTON above.
Follow us on Instagram @kqedabovethenoise
What is an addiction?
There is no universal definition of addiction that everyone agrees on, but in general, addiction is when someone uses a substance or engages in a behavior repeatedly and compulsively, and continues to do so even if other areas of their life suffer.
What does the research say about video game addiction?
Whether you can be truly “addicted” to video games in the same way that you can be addicted to heroin or alcohol is up for debate — the research is kind of all over the place. But, when researchers look at the brains of some people who have problems with gaming, the reward pathways activate in the same way as people addicted to drugs.
So when I can’t put my controller down because I’m REALLY into a video game, does that mean I’m addicted?
Games are meticulously designed to challenge and reward you at JUST the right moments to keep you playing. So when you can’t put down your controller, it COULD be that you’re just really motivated to keep playing. Which brings us to the concept of “Self Determination Theory” — one of the most widely accepted theories to explain what motivates people. Basically, there are three key characteristics of motivation — autonomy, mastery and purpose — and video games like Fortnite offer all three in abundance.
SOURCES
Is video game addiction really an addiction?
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5410811/pdf/pnas.201705077.pdf
Brains on video games
https://www.nature.com/articles/nrn3135
The biology of addiction
https://www.nature.com/articles/nn1579
How the Brain Gets Addicted to Gambling
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-the-brain-gets-addicted-to-gambling/
Learning, Attentional Control, and Action Video Games
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982212001303
Action video games and perception
https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/111/47/16961.full.pdf
Social benefits of video games
https://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/releases/amp-a0034857.pdf
FOR EDUCATORS
KQED Learn https://learn.kqed.org
KQED Teach https://teach.kqed.org
KQED Education https://ww2.kqed.org/education
https://www.facebook.com/KQEDEducation
Tweets by KQEDedspace
https://www.instagram.com/kqededucation
About KQED
KQED, an NPR and PBS affiliate in San Francisco, CA, serves Northern California and beyond with a public-supported alternative to commercial TV, Radio, and web media. Funding for Above the Noise is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Silver Giving Foundation, Stuart Foundation, and William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
