Video game addiction - Research Paper Example

Introduction Video game addiction refers to compulsive use of video games in a manner that end up interfering with an individual’s daily activities. Excessive use of computer games is a mental disorder that affects people of all age groups though it is evident among many pre-teen and teens. It is clear that Video games are evolving and increasingly becoming complex, detailed and captivating to a rising global audience of gamers. The improved graphics and more life-like characters and grander tactical challenges are what make people to spend long hours playing. They end up devaluing other activities like swimming, football, dancing, reading novels among other hobbies one can do during free time. Research has proved that compulsive use of computer and video games is a present-day psychological disorder that medical experts are treating patients on daily basis. This paper analyzes the characteristics and consequences of video game addiction to a person and the society at large. Most teenagers usually like spending most of their siesta playing computer games, which form their number one hobby. Others end up becoming game addicts just out of innocent recreation. Gaming often starts from boredom and the latter pleasure ends up being the reward. Playing provides an alternate reality in which problems are solved and success and reward is possible. (Lemmens,Valkenburg and Peter 56).A good example of an addictive game that is very popular is The Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) .The gamers of MMORPG forms the group of people that is most susceptible to game addiction. The game is very addictive because it has no ending. Addicts form 9.1% of video game players that play these addictive video games on the internet (Kent 18). The level of addiction varies from one person to another. For instance, kids who easily get bored often develop poor relationships with family members and friend. They also feel out of place while at school, (King and Griffiths 201).This is because a void is filled and satisfaction of needs not met elsewhere is achieved. In situations where life becomes stressful gaming actually provides a good avenue of evading from responsibilities and life realities. Video gaming is normally a multi-faceted issue and that is what actually causes the addiction. Especially to the game beginners, the games are usually designed in away to make them addictive. These games are very interesting and this increases the amount of hours people spend playing. Most of them are designed to be very difficult and truly challenging while letting the players to attain minor accomplishments that forces them to continue playing. This design is very similar to that of gambling casinos which permits players to get small ‘wins’ so that they keep playing. Video games have several ‘hooks’ that are in built with the intention to make them more and more addictive. To begin with, The High score is the most recognizable hooks that are found in many games. Struggling to reach the highest mark can have a game player gaming for hours so as to score many points enhancing addiction. Beating the game is a hook that is not found in virtual role-playing games though it is almost all vide games. The drive to win the game is fed as a player moves to the next level or unravels the next hidden clue (Kent 221).This causes the player to make as many trials as possible causing addiction. Role-playing is another hook that allows players to actually craft characters within the game and get on on an exploration that is sole to that particular character. Consequently, there will be a serious emotional attachment to that character, and the whole story, further making it difficult to halt playing. In addition, discovery tactic is a hook that is often found in the role-playing games. A good example is the World of War craft where a good part of this video game is dedicated towards exploring imaginary worlds (Van Rooij et al. 143).The thrill of innovation of even places that are non-existent can really be compelling to an individual. Lastly, Relationships is primarily a hook online. The online role playing games are bases on which people end up building relationships with their fellow players. The internet becomes the place where some players feel most accepted and appreciated. This factor draws players back repeatedly. Video game addiction has very many characteristics that are used to determine whether a person is addicted or not and to what extent. A person may show signs of intense pleasure or guilt. While a person is playing they can show a lot of happiness and a great sense of euphoria or even well-being because of the acceptance and appreciation they get from the virtual community. The guilt is as a result of the Grande number of hours spent playing instead of attending to other issues of more value and importance to them. Obsession to the game is a trait that most addicted persons possess. Even when a person is not playing, they constantly keep thinking about the activities in that particular game. The game actually controls their thoughts and they keep craving to have more hours playing. Neglect of crucial duties, hygiene, work, studies, sleep, food, relationships, friends and family so as to play games is also a sign of addiction. People tend to ignore their responsibilities leading to low performance in diverse spheres of an individual’s life. Lying is a very common aspect of addiction among many players. They tend to deny and tell lies about the actual amount they have devoted to the games and the expenses they may lie to themselves or even to the people around them. This is meant to protect their source of good feeling and what they term as pleasure. When a thing or a person interferes with the computer machine or the activities in the game an addict expresses anger and can end up being extremely depressed. They feel irritable and empty when they are not gaming. They suffer from very bad mood swings and act arrogantly to the people around them especially after the distraction. Addicts are uncontrollable this means they engage in the activities of the game even after making up their minds not to do so. They compulsively set aside time and investing sums of money for the games. Lot of money will thus be spent on games instead of clearing bills like house rent, food among others leading to huge debts so as to pursue and be engaged in addiction. Increased dependency on the game forms a cycle in a person’s life. This is because a high followed by a low; cure is to play again and regain the high even if a deeper low follows and the cycle is repeated (Van Rooij et al 174). The physical appearance of a person can also indicate if a person is addicted. Addicts become unkempt as a result of neglecting personal hygiene. An addict does not set aside time for showers, face-washing or even brushing teeth. The physical effects vary from one player to another. A player that already has poor personal hygiene practices will be at high chance of being affected by these effects. Some addicted players usually have red eyes. This is a result of spending a lot of time staring at the screens of their computers. Others suffer from back pains due to the long sitting hours on the same position. The lack of movement causes stiffness and soreness, but could deteriorate into chronic back problems (Clark, & Scott, 2010).All these adversely affect the individual’s health and well-being. Weight loss can be evident in some addicts because of neglecting food. Eating irregularities results from the gamers not wanting to be keen on proper eating habits. They eat junk and fast foods rather than healthy meals. In severe cases the player may decide not to eat completely. This leads to muscle wasting causing them to have excessive unhealthy weight loss due to starvation. Carpal Tunnel Syndrome which is usually associated with computer use. It is caused when there is squeezing of the main nerve that is located between the forearm and the hand. This happens after the region of the wrist that has the major nerve and the tendons become vexed and swollen. Over use of a computer mouse can cause such irritation and swelling, as can excessive use of a video game controller (Young, 99).Thus it is no wonder that research shows the syndrome is a physical indicator of video game addiction. Another common effect is migraine headaches, which typically begin in one area and gradually spreads, getting more severe as they advance. In severe conditions, the pain can be too much such that the sufferer may end up vomiting. High intensity noise and light can really cause excruciating discomfort. The gamer due to the long hours spent playing is vulnerable to migraines due to the extreme concentration required and the much strain lay on individual’s eyes. Sleep disturbances include disorders like: insomnia, sleep apnea, narcolepsy, parasomnia and nocturnal myoclonus among many others. These disturbances are caused by excessive stimulation of a person’s brain. However, some players are unable to have a good sleep at night just because they deeply and obsessively think about the game they were playing. Increased aggression as a result of games that feature very violent scenarios and actions. This makes the addicts to become desensitized to violence. Players that become gripped in first- person shooter-style video games may adopt a detached view of society or develop aggressive thoughts and tendencies (Young 152). Moreover, video game addiction results to poor performance in school and also at work. Children lack enough time to do their assignments and revise for their examinations which causes a decline in the overall grades. When adults play these games at work, they reduce their concentration and commitment to the activities in their occupation. Game addiction also has social consequences to an individual. Addicted gamers spend so much of their time playing such that their personal relationships get neglected and sometimes disappear altogether (Van Rooij et al, 177).Statistics illustrate that 50 percent of addicted gamers who are in wedlock, report a serious pressure in their marriage due to the addiction. The addicts rarely participate in the actual world conversations because their topics are fenced around the games. As a result, they feel left out which makes them feel offended. Some physical consequences of the addiction can eventually influence social relationships. For instance, an addict who loses sleep because he is playing so much simply does not have the energy to invest in relationships.(Han, Hwang, & Renshaw, 214).Absence of sleep makes the person easily irritable and intolerable. The major symptoms associated with game addiction are isolation and withdrawal. The common thread in addiction is an emotional deregulation, where individuals often feel depressed, lonely, and angry, shy afraid to go out, in a high family conflict situation, and have low self-esteem (Griffiths, & Meredith, 2009).This interferes with significant relations with friends, parents and the society at large. Players have a hard time trying to disintegrate the world of fantasy and the reality. Speculatively, game addiction negatively affects the economy of a nation because of the reduced income per capita. This is because the productive population is not exploiting their potential to the fullest in the national development as they engage in gaming. This causes a decline in the economic growth at the long run. The major first step in the intervention process is to identify the addiction. A Certified Addictions Counselor trained in identification and treatment video game addictions can effectively perform an assessment to determine what level of care is most appropriate (Atsusi, 160).The counselor will also help the addicts accept that they are sick since most of them suffer from denial. Detox for computer and video game addiction is also a solution that can be used to reduce the large number of persons affected. This is effective in reducing the severe symptoms that can be accompanied by withdrawal from the game. This includes: Anger, poor sleeping habits, depression, violence, lack of appetite among many other consequences. This is because the virtual world is more attractive to them than the real life. Creation of awareness on the negative results of game addiction to an individual and the entire nation. This can be done by mass media strategies such as advertisements in televisions, newspapers, journals among others. This sensitizes the public on the mental disorder and ways of preventing and treating the ailment. Change of mentality is also achieved as people understand that the games do not add any value to their present or even future life situations. Instead, productivity is reduced and no prestige is gained despite the high scores. The government can also formulate and implement legislative mechanisms meant to curb game addiction. This can be achieved through the enactment of policies meant to regulate game contents and also limit the age of the user to specific games. For instance, the requirement of identification document number before starting a game to bar children from assessing some games. The society can intervene by coming up with integration events like concerts, drama, music sports and exhibitions so that the youths are kept busy during their free time. Instead of engaging in unprofitable virtual gaming activities. This leads to social integration and facilitate Trans generational culture movement hence preservation. Conclusion As sustained from the foregoing analysis, it is evident that video game addicting is a rapidly growing problem that is affecting people all over the world. Addicts are in a position to make use of the fantasy virtual world as an exchange to real human life connection. This is what causes excitement among individuals thus creating over dependence on internet games. This has adverse negative effects to personal health and further affecting real life social relationships. The overall economic productivity of an individual is also reduced due to the long hours spent gaming instead of doing activities of high economic advantage. From the discussion, Video and computer gaming should thus be seriously discouraged since it has no gain to achievement of a person’s goal and the general vision of the country. 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