The Real Story Behind Gaming Addiction

Gamespot is running a feature looking into the facts behind gaming addiction: what it is, whether it exists, and why the need still exists for objective research into the issue. Quoting: "[Richard M. Ryan, a psychologist and professor of psychology, psychiatry, and education at the University of Rochester in New York] thinks the lack of quality research into video game overuse will be rectified with time as games become more sophisticated in the ways they satisfy people's psychological needs. 'We have a lot of people, some in the media and some in the sciences, who are too ready to make very strong claims about video games, whether we are talking about aggression, addiction, or cultural estrangement, based on very little evidence. I think that is especially how the media often sells stories. Some commentators exaggerate risks, and on the other hand there are defenders of games who deny any and all problems and attack any perceived bad news. Games are relatively new in our culture, and such vacillation between hysteria and denial I suspect often greets any new phenomenon, from hip-hop to the Internet to video games. Both sides usually have some part of the truth, but it may be a while before at least we as scientists, much less as a society, have a coherent understanding.'"

Comments

Absurd

[$RANDOMLUSER]

That's PEW PEW ridiculous. I can PEW PEW PEW stop PEW PEW whenever I want PEW PEW PEW to.

Re:Eh?

[Anonymusing]

I took some brakes for the toilet

Incidentally, how fast were you going on the toilet?

Re:Eh?

[Samschnooks]

Yes they do. People HAVE died from taking sports to extremes. Long distance runners who die from exhaustion or getting lost. Weight lifters who are crushed under weights. What about racers who go just a bit to fast? Taking the sport to extremes, same as gaming for 18 hours is extreem.

Golfers who have been killed by their wives for never being around, bowlers and softball players die of cirrhosis of the liver (the drink more than they play!), hunters who are shot by Vice Presidents, and then there's the tiddlywink players who are just killed for being sissies.

All sports can be rough!

Re:Bring on the scientists

[palegray.net]

This is why we absolutely must legalize peanut butter. Help end the suffering; write your representative today.

Re:media

[Zero__Kelvin]

"Google CEO Eric Schmidt recently called the Internet a "cesspool" of false information. I think he was wrong."

Clearly, you have never heard of Slashdot.