Study
Association experts intervene in all addictive behaviors, including alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, psychotropic drugs, illicit drugs, excessive gambling, and other addictive substances without substances. There are 80 centers throughout France.
The Association deals with addiction with or without products. Especially addiction to gambling, cash games, PMUs, casinos, online Paris, video games! Preventers have been working on this video game addiction for 30 years, from their addiction to gaming at different online source and websites, smartphones, and online gaming sites. At first, mainly boys were playing. Now as many girls as boys are playing. The average age is 34 years old.
Video Game Addiction: Illness
Since June 18, 2018, video game addiction has been recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a disease in its own right. It is called “game addiction”. WHO prioritizes this as “an act related to the enjoyment of video or digital games characterized by loss of control of the game, where the game takes precedence over” other benefits “and daily activities.
It is defined as “an act aimed at raising the ranking”. By continuing or expanding gambling practice, despite the negative effects. According to the WHO, this disorder currently only affects a small proportion of players, ie from 0.5% to 4%. It would mainly concern players of network games and in particular MMORPGs (massively multiplayer roleplaying games).
Gaming Disorder
This addiction is based on the principle of pleasure, like playing sports, seeing friends, taking products (tobacco, alcohol, narcotics), eating… The pleasure that produces dopamine that makes us happy.
The problem is that playing too many video games does not cause a feeling of satiety! Games are more and more complex, time-consuming, demanding a lot of skills, and technology affects our emotions and behavior. Enthusiasts follow influencers, think about the game all the time even when they’re not playing.
Recognize the signs of an addiction
A loss of control, a lot of time spent playing, negative consequences on daily life. To this is added a duration: the behavioral disorder must manifest itself over a period of at least 12 months. Concretely, addiction to video games, in adults as in adolescents, can be detected through certain signs.
The player addicted to online games will gradually abandon his activities, his social relations to be able to devote all his time to the game, which will become his only priority. For adolescents, a drop in school results will be visible, for adults professional difficulties will appear. Added to this is poor diet, poor sleep, anxiety, aggressiveness, sadness.
How to fight video game addiction?
- Take a sincere interest in the player’s universe, ask him to help you discover it.
- Then set limits to the practice of video games (2 hours maximum per day on weekdays; 4 hours per day on weekends)
- Establish a real family dynamic (meals together, discussion time, common activities, and projects).