[Air-l] Video Game Addiction

Sun Oct 20 16:45:23 PDT 2002

Well, well, who would have imagined my first post to this friendly list
would have inspired such a vitriolic response!

air-l at aoir.org writes:
>hmmm.... I am absolutely fascinated by your definition of "addiction" as
>having to include only physiological criteria...
>particularly since the a whole slew of illegal "drugs" are considered
>"addictive" and this is now purely based on psychological addiction.
>Marijuana for example.... and most psychedelics...
>and I do not have a copy of DSM-IV handy but I think that text would
>disagree with you. Disagree with you completely.

The DSM-IV, in fact, does not use the term "addiction" but rather talks
about "abuse" and "dependence" and "intoxication".  Had you taken the time
to look up the index rather than flame me, you would have noticed that
these terms are all discussed in the Substance chapter. Lest you accuse me
of spouting off without providing any facts, here is the complete list:

Substance-Related Disorders
Alcohol Abuse 305.00
Alcohol Dependence 303.90
Alcohol Intoxication 303.00
Alcohol Intoxication Delirium 291.0
Alcohol Withdrawal 291.8
Alcohol Withdrawal Delirium 291.0
Alcohol-Induced Anxiety Disorder 291.8
Alcohol-Induced Mood Disorder 291.8
Alcohol-Induced Persisting Amnestic Disorder 291.1
Alcohol-Induced Persisting Dementia 291.2
Alcohol-Induced Psychotic Disorder With Delusions 291.5
Alcohol-Induced Psychotic Disorder With Hallucinations 291.3
Alcohol-Induced Sexual Dysfunction 291.8
Alcohol-Induced Sleep Disorder 291.8
Alcohol-Related Disorder NOS 291.9
Amphetamine Abuse 305.70
Amphetamine Dependence 304.40
Cannabis Abuse 305.20
Cannabis Dependence 304.30
Cocaine Abuse 305.60
Cocaine Dependence 304.20
Hallucinogen Abuse 305.30
Hallucinogen Dependence 304.50
Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (Flashbacks) 292.89
Inhalant Abuse 305.90
Inhalant Dependence 304.60
Nicotine Dependence 305.10
Opioid Abuse 305.50
Opioid Dependence 304.00
Other (or Unknown) Substance Abuse 305.90
Other (or Unknown) Substance Dependence 304.90
Phencyclidine Abuse 305.90
Phencyclidine Dependence 304.90
Polysubstance Dependence 304.80
Sedative, Hypnotic, or Anxiolytic Abuse 305.40
Sedative, Hypnotic, or Anxiolytic Dependence 304.10
Substance [Amphetamine, Caffeine, Cannabis, Cocaine, Hallucinogen,
Inhalant, Phencyclidine, Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)]-Induced Anxiety
Disorder 292.89
Substance [Amphetamine, Caffeine, Cannabis, Cocaine, Hallucinogen,
Inhalant, Nicotine, Opioid, Phencyclidine, Sedative*, Other (or
Unknown)]-Related Disorder NOS 292.9
Substance [Amphetamine, Caffeine, Cocaine, Opioid, Sedative*, Other (or
Unknown)]-Induced Sleep Disorder 292.89
Substance [Amphetamine, Cannabis, Cocaine, Hallucinogen, Inhalant, Opioid,
Phencyclidine, Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)]-Induced Psychotic Disorder,
With Delusions 292.11
Substance [Amphetamine, Cannabis, Cocaine, Hallucinogen, Inhalant, Opioid,
Phencyclidine, Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)]-Induced Psychotic Disorder,
With Hallucinations 292.12
Substance [Amphetamine, Cannabis, Cocaine, Hallucinogen, Inhalant, Opioid,
Phencyclidine, Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)] Intoxication Delirium 292.81
Substance [Amphetamine, Cannabis, Cocaine, Hallucinogen, Inhalant, Opioid,
Phencyclidine, Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)] Intoxication 292.89
Substance [Amphetamine, Cocaine, Hallucinogen, Inhalant, Opioid,
Phencyclidine, Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)]-Induced Mood Disorder 292.84
Substance [Amphetamine, Cocaine, Nicotine, Opioid, Sedative*, Other (or
Unknown)] Withdrawal 292.0
Substance [Amphetamine, Cocaine, Opioid, Sedative*, Other (or
Unknown)]-Induced Sexual Dysfunction 292.89
Substance [Inhalant, Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)]-Induced Persisting
Dementia 292.82
Substance [Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)] Withdrawal Delirium 292.81
Substance [Sedative*, Other (or Unknown)]-Induced Persisting Amnestic
Disorder 292.83

I'll leave it  to you to read through each disorder and prove me wrong on
whether it is primarily physiological or not. But what should catch your
attention is the glaring absence of any disorder related to a form of
media/technology or media consumption. The pathologizing language of
"addiction" is not used by scientists but by the media, moral majority
types and conservative politicians to fearmonger. There is no evidence
that television, video games or the Internet alter brain chemistry as do
caffeine, nicotine and heroin because there is no research. 

Sure there's plenty of research on a range of harmful effects but a review
of the literature indicates that the jury is out on that one (as someone
here already noted). If you're interested in reading more about the
problems of "direct effects" research concerning children and media
violence, please see:

Buckingham, D. (1993). Children talking television: The making of
television literacy. London: The Falmer Press.

Henry Jenkins has also written about violence and video games and
testified before Congress. You can read his essay "Professor Jenkins Goes
to Washington" on his website. Very instructive on the workings of moral
panic.

Finally, you may find the following interesting:

Drotner, K. (1992). Modernity and media panics. In M. Skovmand & K.
Christian (Eds.), Media Cultures: Reappraising transnational media (pp.
42-62). New York: Routledge.

Fortunately, others were able to see my overall point despite the lack of
citations. (Thanks Elijah for taking the heat!)  I'd be interested in
seeing Matt's research as well.

Rhiannon

>
>
>----- Original Message -----
>From: "Rhiannon Bury" <rbury at oise.utoronto.ca>
>To: <air-l at aoir.org>
>Sent: Saturday, October 19, 2002 3:50 PM
>Subject: Re: [Air-l] Video Game Addiction
>
>
>>
>> I think we should be suspicious of terms like "video addiction";
>> addictions are primarily physiological, not psychological and there is
>not
>> a shred of evidence that playing video games alters brain chemistry in
>any
>> way. I would say that this story is part of the latest media "moral
>panic"
>> to divert attention from deep rooted social and individual problems.
>> Nobody takes his/her own life because of a video game. It's rather like
>> suggesting the boys at Columbine killed their classmates, teachers and
>> themselves because they watched The Matrix and listened to Marilyn
>Manson.
>>
>> Rhiannon
>>
>>
>> Rhiannon Bury
>> Assistant Professor
>> Wilfrid Laurier University
>> Waterloo, ON, N2L 3C5
>> Canada
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> air-l at aoir.org writes:
>> >This week's "48 Hours" on CBS featured a story about
>> >video game 'addiction', especially those playing
>> >"EverQuest" by Sony.  One sad tale of a twentysomething
>> >young man who killed himself after his favorite
>> >character was destroyed.  His mother thinks suicide was
>> >due to the game.
>> >
>> >What amazed me was that most of the people in the story
>> >were not teenage boys, but men in their 20s and 30s.
>> >
>> >Any real research out there on this subject of on-line
>> >gaming addiction?
>> >
>> >Thanks,
>> >
>> >Valdis Krebs
>> >http://www.orgnet.com
>> >
>> >_______________________________________________
>> >Air-l mailing list
>> >Air-l at aoir.org
>> >http://www.aoir.org/mailman/listinfo/air-l
>>
>>
>>
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