Abstract
Online gaming has greatly increased in popularity in recent years, and with this has come a multiplicity of problems due to excessive involvement in gaming. Gaming disorder, both online and offline, has been defined for the first time in the draft of 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). National surveys have shown prevalence rates of gaming disorder/addiction of 10%-15% among young people in several Asian countries and of 1%-10% in their counterparts in some Western countries. Several diseases related to excessive gaming are now recognized, and clinics are being established to respond to individual, family, and community concerns, but many cases remain hidden. Gaming disorder shares many features with addictions due to psychoactive substances and with gambling disorder, and functional neuroimaging shows that similar areas of the brain are activated. Governments and health agencies worldwide are seeking for the effects of online gaming to be addressed, and for preventive approaches to be developed. Central to this effort is a need to delineate the nature of the problem, which is the purpose of the definitions in the draft of ICD-11.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | Journal of Behavioral Addictions |
| Volume | 6 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Pages (from-to) | 271-279 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| ISSN | 2062-5871 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2017 |
Funding
Funding sources: No financial support was received for the preparation of this review paper. Conflict of interest: JBS, AR-M, and KM are members of the Substance Use and Related Disorders Work Group for ICD-11. JBS, NP, and MP have been involved in the research and/or editorial phases of the development of DSM-5. AR-M and SH are heads of WHO collaborating centers. All authors have participated in consultation meetings (in two cases not in person but by preparing material for them) convened by the WHO (together with government authorities in Japan, Republic of Korea, and Hong Kong, China) from 2014 onward. Participants in these meetings have received travel support from WHO or their national governments. VP is a staff member of the WHO. MP is supported by the US National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse and a National Center for Responsible Gaming Center of Excellence grant. Apart from research funds received from government authorities, the authors declare they have not received any remuneration from commercial, educational, or other organizations in relation to this paper. The statements made and views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the organizations to which they are affiliated, nor do they necessarily represent policies or decisions of the WHO.
Research Areas and Centers
- Academic Focus: Center for Brain, Behavior and Metabolism (CBBM)
