Videogame Addiction Study Finds Evidence of a Phenomenon Seen in Drug and Alcohol Addicts

A PhD student at the Australian National University has reportedly documented some of the first scientific evidence that video game addiction has a fundamental affect on the attention system of sufferers, a phenomenon seen in heroin, nicotine, alcohol and gambling addictions.

[Batzi]

! is my addiction.

[rezzah]

To me it is my hobby which I learn from, not suffer. But I do accept the possibility of those who may seek an escape from society in video games, also the varying degrees of this issue (which might actually apply to all of us).

[SilentNegotiator]

The problem is that VGs are always becoming targeted.

The reality is that [anything] Addition causes effects that are similar to those caused by [anything else] Addition. Plain and simple. Your body is introduced to a stimuli that causes a euphoric rush, it asks for more.

[TopDudeMan]

I don't play games a lot because I'm addicted to them. I play them because they're fun. Why does everything have to be a bloody illness?

[rezzah]

because of the sciences that focus on the psychological self. If our society were still blatantly dominated by religion then our problems, even when discovered through scientific understanding, would be blamed on some spiritual means.

Of course the results of this study affects yourself only as much as you want it too. The real problem is that governments can use this as a "i told you so" tactic to push their policies against video games/criminals.

Everything has their ups and downs, there are studies that also provide conclusions that video games can help us learn better or increase our cognitive skills. .

[Pillsbury1]

Ill tell you when ive gamed enough! just hook it to my veins!

[jmc8888]

ROFL it's not science. People have to learn what IS science, and what ISN'T. This isn't science.

Why is all psychology, statistics, and all sorts of other crap called science? Because people are morons.

It isn't science. There is nothing called behavioral science. There's behavior, but it isn't...science.

[rezzah]

Well as I know it science is empirical knowledge, which is information gathered through the senses. What makes something logical is while being gathered empirically, through multiple repetitious acts, the more the same conclusion occurs the more logical the idea/theory is.

The moment a different conclusion occurs the previous theory is scrapped and a new one takes its place.

The sciences is grounded into the world itself, where as the spiritual is illogical as it is not gathered empirically. This is what you will refer to as blind faith, just a baseless belief.

I would like you to share your understanding of what defines "science" to you, the more perspective the more interesting.

[Qrphe]

This is still science. There should be as many studies of a certain subject which will all have similar or different conclusions. The patterns from these studies are analyzed and then after a gigantic plethora of evidence from these studies is obtained people start drawing theories. Then it doesn't stop there because more studies are done and theories keep on changing. It applies to everything, psychology, the environment, physics, etc. Pretty much anything that uses the strict format of the scientific method.

[sypher]

If we conclude all behaviour is controlled by the mind.

Then we can by summary say all 'bad' behaviour is a mental error in the persons brain that needs to be 'treated'. This is where that logic goes ;) where nothing is anybodies fault but a fault with an organ, which is true to an extent but would mean everyone who commits a crime doesn't go to jail but a mental home ;)

[JeepGamer]

I don't doubt it at all.

Now let's talk about people who are crazy sports fans...

[Tundra]

There's a reason this is documented as "some of the first scientific evidence."

No one cared in the first place.

[rainslacker]

An addiction is an addiction. It doesn't really matter what the stimulus is. Some people are just predisposed to addiction, and eventually they will find something that satisfies that need within them. Sometimes it's chemical(drugs), sometimes it's mental(gaming or gambling).

I do find one flaw with these studies though. The fact that a gamer may take longer to reply to a gaming related term could just mean that a specific term has more than one meaning for them, thus meaning they have to search more for the right response. Granted I don't really know how the study was conducted, so maybe this means nothing.

[mortalrage]

Science is a addiction, look at all the studies out there using the name science.