Experts Oppose Classifying Gaming Addiction As Mental Disorder

News.com reports that despite earlier rumblings that addiction to videogames could be classified a mental disorder similar to alcoholism, experts have stepped back from that analysis. The decision by the AMA is that psychiatrists should make further efforts to study the phenomenon, while addiction experts strongly opposed the idea at the organization's annual meeting. "Even before debate on the subject began, the committee that made the proposal backed away from its position, and instead recommended that the American Psychiatric Association consider the change when it revises its next diagnostic manual in 5 years. The psychiatrist group has said if the science warrants, it could be considered for inclusion in the next diagnostic manual, which will be published in 2012. While occasional use of video games is harmless and may even help with some disorders like autism, doctors said in extreme cases it can interfere with day-to-day necessities like working, showering or even eating."

Comments

Gambling?

[NJVil]

If the uncontrollable desire to play games of chance (gambling) is classified as an addiction, how is an uncontrollable desire to play games of any other sort not? Can online gambling be considered an addiction?

The only meaningful difference is the money involved. And even then, between gold farming and monthly fees for WOW, is it really that different?

Re:Gambling?

[achilles777033]

Yes, there is a difference. Fees for WoW cost $15/month at worst. And if you don't break the Terms of Use, you won't be buying gold. And trust me, the true Addicts have no need for bought gold. On-line gambling can completely drain anyone's bank account if they are sufficiently addicted. WoW costs $15 a month... on-line gambling costs rent/food/gas/everything else money. Big Difference. Gaming isn't addictive by itself, not everyone who touches it get addicted. Not even a sizable percentage. Gaming gets a bad rap off of people who naturally have addictive tendancies, who also happen to play games. Every leisure activity has it's members who abuse them. The difference is that MMO's are finally getting a large enough following that people are starting to take notice of the abusers.

Re:Gambling?

[Aladrin]

Alcohol isn't addictive by itself. Not everyone who touches it get addicted.

In fact, most 'addictive' drugs can have the same thing said about them. You have to abuse them before you get 'addicted'.

Gaming can also drain someone's bank account. You talk about 'gaming addiction' as if it only applies to World of Warcraft, and the only costs are the $15/month. You completely forget the entire gaming hardware race, and the cost of consoles and other games. And it's not as if you could just drain the account once and be done, no. There are new games released constantly. More than enough to keep someone broke, especially if they've already lost their job to the addiction.

I admit it. I'm addicted to gaming. There's nothing I'd rather be doing. When I can manage to do -nothing- else but play a game, preferably a new exciting one, I'll do it. This means not showering some days, eating quick unhealthy meals, and occasionally skipping work because I just -have- to play that new game.

Do I think I need help? No. I don't even -want- it classified as a disorder that the government will help with. Normal obsessive-compulsive disorder probably covers this well enough anyhow, for those that take it far enough to warrant help.

But don't dismiss this problem simply because you don't have it yourself. And don't make fun of it, either.

Re:Is the AMA turning neocon?

[Anonymous Coward]

Lovely, let's add another meaningless disorder to the DSM so that people can take real mental illnesses even less seriously.

Re:Eating ...

[D-Cypell]

Personally, I dont know what the hell they are talking about... of course I eat!! I have level 225 in cooking! What they think I am just going to *wait* for my HP to regen??

Re:Is the AMA turning neocon?

[morgan_greywolf]

Actually, my wife is, interestingly enough, a psychologist. The main reason that they've taken to adding so many disorders to the DSM is not that they've found new ones per se but that they have found that within certain disorders, like the autistic spectrum of diseases, that there are many more subtypes. At one point, anyone with a pervasive development (autistic-like) disorder was slapped with the label of 'autism'. Now they have identified specific types of autism, everything from 'classic' autism to Asperger's to multiple-complex developmental disorder.

As for video game addiction, my wife happens to also be a specialist in addiction studies and she was actually one of the first people to write about video game addiction as a disorder back in the late 80s/early 90s. It was not widely-accepted at that point that video game playing could be addictive -- but now that it's becoming generally-accepted to be so, she's feeling vindicated.

Re:Eating ...

[PackRat Q. Winnebago]

True, but then at a LAN party you're also in the presence of other people, so the stock-standard argument about addictive gaming being anti-social doesn't hold either.