The facts and causes of this very serious mental illness were presented at a meeting of the Psychiatric Clinic of the University of Thessaly and the Regional Directorate of Education of Thessaly
A new serious and large-scale mental illness is now detected and recorded mainly in childhood and is directly linked to the internet and electronic games. It is about the disease “video game disorder“, which according to modern studies, worldwide, affects ages from 12 to 25 years.
The evidence and causes of this very serious mental illness were presented at the recent seminar held at Larisa from the Psychiatric Clinic of the University of Thessaly in collaboration with the Regional Directorate of Education of Thessaly.
As the child psychiatrist and doctor of the School of Medicine of the University of Thessaly explained to APE-MBE Konstantinos Siomosthe diagnostic criteria for the disorder concern persistent or periodically repeated behavior where there are however clear pathological elements.
Mr. Siomos stated that the criteria are: a) The reduced self-control regarding the game b) The game acquires more and more priority in the person’s life, to the point that it comes first over all other interests and activities c) Continuation of game despite the appearance of negative consequences.
“The WHO notes that this pattern of behavior must be serious enough to lead to a significant burden on a personal, family, social, educational, work level or in other important areas of functioning” noted Mr. Siomos and added: “This the pattern can be continuous (i.e. lasting a continuous period of time without interruption) or episodic and repetitive (eg the child must be disciplined when the parent removes all electronic toys from the home and has no self-control otherwise). This behavior must be present for a period of at least 12 months for the diagnosis to be made, although the duration may be shortened if all diagnostic criteria are present and the symptoms are severe.”
Among other things, Mr. Siomos told the Athenian and Macedonian News Agency that the high-risk groups by age and gender for gaming addiction are between the ages of 12 and 25. He also stated that although the percentage of girls who frequently play electronic and online games increased significantly, they did not seem to be addicted to them as much as to social media, while boys mainly to online games.
“Boys tend to play more action games, with a lot of intensity, as well as role-playing games where groups are formed with intense interactions with each other and a lot of competition. Girls tend to engage in more social, low-intensity games,” said the Doctor of the Medical School of the University of Thessaly.
Referring to the cause of these addictions, he said that this addiction is behavioral but there is also a biological background to its development.
“The biological background is related to the release of dopamine from the nucleus accumbens, in the context of the immediate reward offered by either online gaming or online activity,” he said. He emphasized that “dopamine is the hormone of euphoria. The person feels good when performing the activity and the feeling of taxation is reduced when they withdraw from it. So the child is looking for a way to feel beautiful again. He goes back to electronic devices because they will raise his dopamine level, so he will feel good. With other daily activities, such as reading or other types of play, the brain does not release the same amount of dopamine. That is why the phenomenon is observed with such intensity and extent”.
Finally, Mr. Siomos mentioned that one more serious element concerns the diagnosis of “dangerous game” disorder. This is yet another new diagnosis where the child may put himself at physical risk or at risk of mental disorder, either with the very high frequency of play, the extreme amount of time spent playing, the neglect of basic physical needs or high-risk behaviors associated with with the game (e.g. consumption of substances so that he remains continuously alert for a long time).
“This category was added following several extreme incidents particularly in the Far East where players have tragically died after days of continuous online gaming. In Greece, two clinical cases of adolescent self-injurious behavior have been described in the context of the intensity of an MMORPG game. Obviously, this diagnosis takes priority because of the risk it entails, although we can say that it is an extreme form of electronic gaming disorder,” said Mr. Siomos, among other things.
RES-EMP
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