Surviving the Game: Battling Internet and Video Game Addictions

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Surviving the Game Battling Internet and Video
Game Addictions
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Gaming Internet Shorthand

• MUSH - Multi-User Shared Habitat
• MUD Multi-User Dungeon
• FPS First Person Shooter
• RTS Real Time Strategy
• PvP Player vs. Player
• MMORPG Mass Multi-
• Player Online Role
• Playing Game
• RL Real Life

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TOP 5 MOST ADDICTIVE GAMES
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• 'World of Warcraft'With over 9 million
  registered players, Blizzards World of
  Warcraft is the big daddy of addictive games.
  And these players dont just buy the massively
  multiplayer online role-playing game - they also
  pay a monthly fee so they can continually get
  their fix. Why is WoW so popular? It could be
  the fantasy environment that allows players to be
  mythical characters with incredible powers. It
  could be the large-scale battles that let gamers
  group together and go on raids. It may be the
  games social element that makes it easy for
  people to make new friends and connect with old
  ones.
• No matter what WoW means to its legions of
  fans, theres no denying that this game can make
  sitting alone at your desk feel like one huge
  party.
• World of Warcraft is expected to take in 2
  billion worldwide.

Arizona, United States Population, total
6,166,318 2006 census
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• Halo'In fact, the largest-grossing one-day
  media sale ever occurred on Nov. 9, 2004, when
  stores sold 125 million worth of Halo 2 games
  the eagerly awaited sequel to the hit Xbox game
  Halo, in which individual players defend Earth
  against alien invaders.

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• 'EverQuest'
• Fans of EverQuest will point out that this game
  came long before World of Warcraft and was the
  first home for fantasy-loving RPG fans.
• And theyd be right The game, which shipped in
  1999, was hugely popular with players and critics
  alike. So popular that the significant others of
  some of the games fans formed a real-life
  support group. There is a reason, after all, that
  EverQuest was known by its fans as EverCrack
  and NeverRest.

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• 'Doom'
• When Doom came out in 1993, its 3-D graphics
  and awesome multiplayer abilities put it on the
  bleeding edge of gaming. Until then, it was quite
  uncommon to hook multiple computers together for
  a group gaming experience, but Doom changed all
  that. People fell big time for this alien
  hunting, first-person shooter, and soon there
  were many imitators, spawning a genre known
  simply as Doom Clones.
• The number of people who still play Doom today,
  over 10 years after its launch, bespeaks its
  addictive qualities.

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• 'Tetris'
• Tetris is just a simple stacking game, right?
  Pieces fall from above and you pack them tightly
  together, keeping the pile from reaching the top
  of the screen. How addictive can that be?
• Very. The Tetris epidemic has been in full
  effect since it came out in 1984, and youd be
  hard pressed to find a gaming system (console,
  handheld or other) that doesnt have at least one
  form of the game available for it. Today, you can
  even download Tetris directly to your cell
  phone in case you need to get your fix on the
  fly.

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Is Game Addiction True Addiction?

• The person needs more and more of a substance or
  behavior to keep him going.
• If the person does not get more of the substance
  or behavior, they become irritable and miserable.
• ?????
• About 40 percent of players of multiplayer online
  games like EverQuest say they consider
  themselves addicted. Some players refer to the
  game as Evercrack.

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True Addiction?

• Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
  Disorders - IV
• The central issue is the absence of research
  literature on this. At this point it is not
  considered an official disease. We are probably
  going to mention it in the appendix.
• - Dr. Charles OBrien
• Director of the University of Pennsylvanias
• Center for Studies in Addiction and chair of
• the DSM-V committee

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Is Game Addiction True Addiction?

• Contingencies and Schedules
• A contingency in gaming is a
• rule or set of rules governing
• when a reward is given out.
• Ratios and Intervals
• Variable ratio schedules
• produce the highest rates of
• activity.
• Behavioral Game Design
• by John Hopson

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The Biological and Psychological Factors

• As a chemical messenger, dopamine is similar to
  adrenaline. Dopamine affects brain processes that
  control movement, emotional response, and ability
  to experience pleasure and pain.

• Research suggests that playing video games
  elevates levels of dopamine.
• More to this addiction than just brain chemistry.
  There is a psychological component to the
  addiction
• I can escape or feel good about my life. I
  dont like the way I feel . . .Ill play video
  games. USU student

DOPAMINE
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Who is at ?

• Common Threads compulsive playing tends to
  cover psychological problems
• ___________________________________
• Depressed
• Lonely
• Angry
• Shy
• Agoraphobia
• History of Family Conflicts
• Low Self-Esteem
• Social Anxiety

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Warning Signs
Xbox in control, Enter at own risk!

• Lost Sense of Time
• Dependency
• Escape Mechanism
• Debt
• Anger/ Depression
• Inability to Control

• Withdrawal
• Isolation
• Intense Pleasure/Guilt
• Obsessing
• Neglecting
• Lying

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• Game playing is part of the daily routine for
• 65 of girls
• 85 of boys
• 1 in 8 develop patterns similar to other types of
  addiction and abuse
• 2002 survey of 1500 teenagers 25 were
  identified as compulsive video gamers
• 50 described a friends gaming behavior as
  addiction
• Niolosi, 2002 Tournemille, 2002

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• WHO PLAYS COMPUTER AND VIDEO GAMES?
• of American households
• play computer or video games.

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• WHO PLAYS COMPUTER AND VIDEO GAMES?
• 67
• of American households
• play computer or video games.

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• The average game player age is

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• The average game player age is
• 34

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• The average game player age is
• 34

Age of Gamers 25 under 18 years 49 18-49
years 26 50 years
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• WHO PLAYS COMPUTER AND VIDEO GAMES?
• GENDER
• of Game Players

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• WHO PLAYS COMPUTER AND VIDEO GAMES?
• GENDER
• of Game Players
• 60 male
• 40 female
• In fact, WOMEN age 18 or older represent a
  significantly
• greater portion of the game-playing population
  (33)
• than boys age 17 or younger (20).

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67 of homes in America own either a
console and/or PC used to run entertainment
software.
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DO PARENTS CONTROL WHAT THEIR KIDS PLAY?

• 76
• of parents believe that the parental controls
  available in
• all new video game consoles are useful. Further,
  parents impose time limit usage on video games
  more than any other form of entertainment
• 83of parents place time limits on video game
  playing
• 78of parents place time limits on television
  viewing
• 75of parents place time limits on Internet usage
• 66of parents place time limits on movie viewing

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• U.S. computer and video game software sales
  generated 10.5 billion in 2009.

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What are they playing?

• Multiplicity of Games and Hardware

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TOP 20 SELLING COMPUTER GAMES OF 2009BY UNITS
SOLD

• Rank Title
• 1 CALL OF DUTY MODERN WARFARE 2
• 2 NEW SUPER MARIO BROS.
• 3 WII SPORTS RESORT W/ WII MOTION PLUS
• 4 WII FIT W/ BALANCE BOARD
• 5 MARIO KART W/ WHEEL
• 6 WII PLAY W/ REMOTE
• 7 CALL OF DUTY MODERN WARFARE 2
• 8 WII FIT PLUS W/BALANCE BOARD
• 9 HALO 3 ODST
• 10 POKEMON PLATINUM VERSION

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TOP 20 SELLING COMPUTER GAMES OF 2009BY UNITS
SOLD

• Rank Title
• 11 MADDEN NFL 10
• 12 NEW SUPER MARIO BROS
• 13 MARIO KART DS
• 14 ASSASSINS CREED II
• 15 MADDEN NFL 10
• 16 LEFT 4 DEAD 2
• 17 MARIO LUIGI BOWSERS INSIDE STORY
• 18 UFC 2009 UNDISPUTED
• 19 EA SPORTS ACTIVE BUNDLE
• 20 RESIDENT EVIL 5
• Source The NPD Group/Retail Tracking Service

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Why Would I Ever Miss Class?
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25
24
18
16
15
12
9
9
8
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VIDEO GAME ADDICTIONS ATTACHMENT TO STUDENT
DEVELOPMENT THEORY AND ISSUES
CHICKERINGS SEVEN VECTORS

• DEVELOPING COMPETENCE
• Intellectual competence
• Physical and manual skills competence
• Interpersonal competence
• MANAGING EMOTIONS
• Awareness of emotions
• Acknowledge emotions
• Release of emotions
• Control of emotions
• Bonding with others
• MOVING THROUGH AUTONOMY TOWARD
• INTERDEPENDENCE
• Function with self-sufficiency
• Free from continual and pressing need for
• reassurance/approval
• Organize activities or solve problems in a
  self-directed way
• Willingness to pursue strong interest or stand on
  convictions
• DEVELOPING MATURE INTERPERSONAL
• RELATIONSHIPS

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Where does it Hurt?

• Academic
• 18.5 of students reported internet usage
  and gaming caused lower grades or a dropped
  class. Alcohol 8.5 (Michigan State)
• Social
• GamingSucks.com
• "WoW" Widows Support Group at Yahoo.com
  -3,000 members.
• GamerWidow.com has some 2,000 members who
  gather in the forums to vent their frustrations
  and mourn their losses together.
• Financial
• In the past 10 years, U.S. video-game
  sales have almost tripled to 10 billion last
  year

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Hurting us socially?

• Given choice, video games over every other
  activity?

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Research Summary

• Does it increase violence or negatively impact
  prosocial behavior?
• Long-term vs. short-term
• Does it improve learning / literacy?
• Mixed to Yes
• Are they addictive?
• Yes . . .
• Does it prepare youth?
• Mixed to Yes

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IDENTIFICATION
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Checklist for Direct Interaction

• Attitude
• Physical Appearance
• Behavior
• Academic Performance
• See Handout

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What does my gut tell me...
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Gaming BEST Practices

• Game play should never exceed 7-21 hours per week
• Playing with rl friends and family is better than
  playing alone
• Cooperative game play vs. Competitive
• game play
• Creative games DO benefit

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Prevention

• Identify students with major indicators and
  common threads
• Discussion in Freshmen orientation programs
• Resident Assistant / Peer Mentor Training
• Early Alert, Academic Success and other
  Intervention programs (poor grades, attendance)
• Ask Questions about usage

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Prevention

• Explore partnerships with Counseling and
  Psychological Services
• Direct interventions
• Programs/activities that only support productive
  gaming
• Disposal Incentive Programs
• Living Learning Communities
• IT training

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Suggested Readings

• Cyber Junkie Escape the Gaming and Internet Trap
  Kevin Roberts
• Game Addiction The Experience and the Effects
  Neils Clark P. Shavaun Scott
• Alone Together Why We Expect More from
  Technology and Less from Each Other Sherry
  Turkle
• Internet Addiction A Handbook and Guide to
  Evaluation and Treatment Kimberly S. Young
• Life on the Screen Identity in the Age of the
  Internet Sherry Turkle
• I, Avatar The Culture and Consequences of Having
  a Second Life Mark Stephen Meadows
• Coming of Age in Second Life An Anthropologist
  Explores the Virtually Human Tom Boellstorff
• Second Lives A Journey Through Virtual Worlds
  Tim Guest
• The Making of Second Life Notes from the New
  World Wagner James Au

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But THANKS!!!! For coming and playing!
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Sources

• Nisolosi, B. (2002) Video Game Culture A
  Harmless Addiction?
• http//www.catholicexchange.com/vm/PFarticle.asp?
  vm_id2art_id13810sec_id24907
• Tournemille, D. (2002) First-person shooter The
  video gamers addiction.
• http//www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNe
  ws/1030135158281_3?s_nameno_ads
• Orzack, M. (2005)
• http//www.computeraddiction.com/peter.htm
• http//www.fcd.org/admin/cgi-bin/file.asp?id52
• Kalning, K. (2007) If Second Life isnt a Game,
  what is it?
• http//www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17538999/
• Bruner, O. (2006) Playstation Nation Protect
  Your Child from Video Game Addiction (New York,
  Center Street)
• Entertainment Software Association
  www.theesa.com. See Facts and Research.
• Benedetti, W. (2007) Game Widows Grieve Lost
  Spouses
• http//www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20397322/