Could Gaming Addictions Become a Public Health Crisis???

Here is What One Study Found

• Video games provide relaxation and entertainment for billions of people; however, these games can sometimes lead to obsession or addiction (Kuperczko et al., 2022).
• Over the past two decades, there have been cases of people dying while playing video games for extended periods of time, and unfortunately, there have been cases of homicide or suicide where video games were a motivating factor (Kuperczko et al., 2022).

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Kuperczko and colleagues (2022) state that between 1995 and 2017 internet use has gone from less than one percent to forty-six percent. This growth has also spawned an internet gaming disorder. People with IGD may spend several hours a day gaming, and in extreme cases may spend days online with little food or drink intake or sleep, leading to adverse or fatal physiological conditions.

Kuperczko and colleagues (2022) have determined that there has not been a substantial review of these deaths in medical or health science literature, nor have they found any studies or case reports. Kuperczko and colleagues (2022) set out to investigate the real size of the problem of death linked to playing video games, if these subjects were addicted to gaming, the connection between gaming and death, and the possible reasons leading to death.

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 Their Methods of Investigation 🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

• 🟥The researchers compiled all of the instances where the act of playing video games was linked to the player's death.

1. Their first search was a Google search using the keywords death, die, and video game which led them to numerous cases in online newspapers, blogs, and video portals. This search yielded a small collection of cases
2. Their second scientific search via Pubmed did not yield any relevant publications (Kuperczko et al., 2022).

🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦Their Results🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦

• They ended up with 24 cases up to the end of 2021 (Kuperczko et al., 2022):

1. Only one of the reported victims of gaming-related death was female, and little is known about her gaming habits.
2. Internet addiction among females typically involves social media rather than gaming, with IGD being seven times more common among male adolescents.
3. Deaths appear to be linked to action-rich games, which are less popular among females, and competitiveness in games may lead males to play for extended periods without pausing.
4. The victims were mostly adolescents or young adults, with ages ranging from 11 to 40 years.
   
5. The first victims were in their twenties, an age group that was among the first to become familiar with computer games and experience IGD as an emerging problem.
6. Over time, the age range of victims broadened as former teens and young adults aged into their thirties and the spread of computers, the internet, and games reached younger age groups.
7. More than half of the cases occurred in Southeast Asia, where internet cafes are popular and provide a cheap alternative to owning a personal computer and paying for internet access, electricity, and games.
8. Internet cafes also offer cheap food and drinks, as well as private rooms for sleeping or showering, allowing customers to remain inside for days without supervision.
9. In contrast, cases from Western regions typically occurred at home due to the lower popularity of internet cafes and the expansion of home-based internet access points.
10. The recent spread of smartphones has led to changes in internet access and gaming, with the first gaming deaths linked to smartphones also appearing.

⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛Limitations of the Study⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛

• The authors acknowledge that the search for cases may not have been complete and that there may be other cases that were not reported.
• They also note that the quality of source data was sometimes poor and that the exact cause of death was often unconfirmed or speculative.
• Despite these limitations, the authors believe that their findings are important and that they raise awareness of the potential risks of excessive video game playing.
• The search for cases was limited to English-language sources, like international electronic newspapers.

And while these numbers may appear small, it is definitely something worth monitoring. One death is too many deaths especially if they could have been prevented.

 References

Kuperczko, D., Kenyeres, P., Darnai, G., Kovacs, N., & Janszky, J. (2022). Sudden gamer death: non-violent death cases linked to playing video games. BMC Psychiatry, 22(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-022-04373-5

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Voyeur Eyes Only

 

Voyeurism

• Voyeurism is believed to be the most common paraphilic disorder (Hooley, et al. 2019). Someone can be diagnosed with voyeuristic disorder if they have recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, urges, or behaviors involving the observation of unsuspecting people who are undressing or of couples engaging in sexual activity (Hooley et al. 2019). Voyeurism is often accompanied by exhibitionism, and it is also associated with interest in sadomasochism and cross-dressing.

Why do some people adopt this behavior?    

• Here are the DSM-5 criteria for a Voyeuristic Disorder:

• 🟦Over a period of at least 6 months, recurrent and intense sexual arousal from observing an unsuspecting person who is naked, in the process of disrobing, or engaging in sexual activity, as manifested by fantasies, urges, or behaviors. 
• 🟦The individual has acted on these sexual urges with a nonconsenting person, or the sexual urges or fantasies cause clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning.
• 🟦The individual experiencing the arousal and/or acting on the urges is at least 18 years of age.

Voyeurism is not usually linked to other serious crimes. Most people have voyeuristic urges, but they are usually prevented by the risk of being caught and ethical concerns about privacy.

References

 Hooley, J. M., Nock, M. K., & Butcher, J. N. (2019). Abnormal Psychology (18th ed.). Pearson Education (US). https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9780135191033

When is a Paraphilia not a Paraphilia??

When a Paraphilia Becomes a Disorder

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 Paraphilic disorders are characterized by recurrent, intense sexual fantasies, urges, or behaviors that are atypical in terms of their targets, context, or participants, and that cause significant distress or impairment in the individual's life. These urges and behaviors generally involve (Hooley et al., 2019) :

1. abnormal targets of sexual attraction such as objects or children\
2. unusual courtship behaviors such as watching someone undress without their consent or exposing themselves to others without consent.
3. the desire for pain and suffering of oneself or other people.

🟥Paraphilias challenge the authors of DSM editions for two main reasons (Hooley et al, 2019):

1. Some paraphilias are considered pathological even if the person experiencing the symptoms does not experience any distress.
2. Some other categories of paraphilia may be compatible with psychological health and happiness if all parties are of age and willfully consent.

The DSM-5 distinguishes between paraphilias and paraphilic disorders (Hooley et al. 2019).

🟥Paraphilias are defined as unusual sexual interests that cause no harm to either person or others.

🟥Paraphilic disorders - are defined when paraphilias cause suffering to anyone involved.

• Although mild forms of these conditions occur in many people's lives, a person with the disorder is distinguished by the intensity and the exclusivity with which their sexuality focuses on the acts or objects in question (Hooley, et al. 2019).  For instance, in some cases, orgasm is not attainable without these acts or objects.
• These disorders can also be compulsive requiring someone to orgasm as often as four to ten times per day.
• Most people with paraphilic disorders are male.

 The DSM-5 recognizes eight specific paraphilic disorders that can be classified into several different subtypes (Hooley, et al. 2019): 

1. Voyeuristic
2. Exhibitionistic
3. Frotteuristic
4. Sexual sadism
5. Sexual Masochism
6. fetishistic
7. transvestic 
8. pedophilic

There is also another specified paraphilic disorder which includes several rare disorders (Hooley et al. 2019):

• Scatologia - obscene phone calls
• Necrophilia - the sexual desire for corpses
• Zoophilia - sexual interest in animals
• Apotemnophilia - sexual excitement and desire about having a limb amputated
• Coprophilia - sexual arousal to feces

References

Hooley, J. M., Nock, M. K., & Butcher, J. N. (2019). Abnormal Psychology (18th ed.). Pearson Education (US). https://bookshelf.vitalsource.com/books/9780135191033