The Danger of Video Game Addiction

Video games are supposed to be fun, entertaining, challenging and absorbing. That's the way the people who design the games want it. However, there are many times those attributes can entangle the lives of those who participate in these games in a negative way. Take gambling, for example. Playing cards can also be fun, entertaining, challenging, and absorbing. The problem is, certain individuals have difficulty in keeping the activity in its proper place.

Just as someone can have a gambling problem, mental health experts have been saying for several years now that video game addiction is a real and growing problem. While it might sound like just another pop diagnosis, the depth of the problem is difficult to determine due to the fact that no formal studies estimating the prevalence of the condition have been published. That being said, a 2007 poll claimed that 8.5% of young gamers could be addicted to video games (1).

Regardless of the actual number of people who might fall under an as-yet-clinically-specified diagnosis of video game addict, there have been a number of terribly sad and dramatic deaths associated with video gaming that have made headlines over the past few years. Some of the most notable include:

A 28-year-old South Korean man who was playing Starcraft at an internet café who collapsed after a marathon 50-hour session. His death was attributed to heart failure secondary to extreme exhaustion (2).

Mary Christina Cordell allowed her 3-year-old daughter to die of heat stroke in her car while she sat inside playing Everquest (3).

Tyrone Spellman, 27, was convicted of the murder of his 17-month-old daughter. She was killed in a rage over a broken Xbox (4).

Was there a way to prevent these deaths? Is there a way to treat, or possibly even cure, video game addiction? Sadly, very little has been done in terms of research, and there are only a handful of treatment facilities in existence. Until the problem becomes so big that it can't be ignored or an A-list celebrity decides to make it his or her pet cause, it will likely remain difficult to find professional assistance for those affected.

This leaves it up to friends and family of those with the condition to help the addict. Each case is different, and the method for helping the afflicted should reflect the individual circumstances. As I am not a professional, I will not be foolish enough to offer medical advice for somebody who is trying to assist a person with a video game addiction. I will say, though, that online games seem to present the greatest challenge. With home games, once a game is finished or played long enough, the player will get tired of it and look for something else. Online games, though, are perpetual, continually inventing new quests and challenges which keeps giving the addict a fix. If you have no idea what to try, you might want to contact http://www.video-game-addiction.org/.

As someone who passionately loves video games, I would urge all my fellow gamers out there to be on the lookout for friends or family who are getting just a bit too involved in their video games. Remember, video games are great fun, but they're not the only way to have fun.

Sources:

1) http://en.academic.ru/dic.nsf/enwiki/1091357
2) http://www.discovertherealworld.com/theproblem-horrorstories.html
3) http://www.discovertherealworld.com/theproblem-horrorstories.html
4) http://www.servinghistory.com/topics/Video_game_addiction::sub::Notable_Deaths