Chapitre 3 Video Game Flashcards
What is a MMORPG ?
A massively-multiplayer online role-playing game.
What are the core components of addiction?
Salience, mood modification, tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, cravings, relapse.
What is a persistent world ?
A virtual world which continues after a player stops playing.
Which writer has suggested that addiction represents an escape from too much or too little stimulation?
Jacob.
What is an avatar?
A virtual character representing player in game.
What is a video game addiction?
Despite no universal agreement, most definitions of video game addiction refer to excessive play which results in negative emotional, social, relational, educational, or career - related consequences.
May also be defined as a serious loss of control over gaming that leads to significant harm for the player in the real world.
Is video game addiction listed as a mental disorder in the DSM-5?
No, the APA has so far refused to recognize video game addiction as a diagnosis worthy of being included in the DSM.
Give at least five psychological symptoms of a video game addiction :
Five of :
- Lowered interest in school achievement
- Feelings of anger and frustration when not allowed access to the video game
- Feeling depressed or anxious when not playing the game (especially for a prolonged period) - Thinking about the next gaming session when not online
- Dreaming about the game
- Experiencing calmness, peacefulness, or euphoria while playing (especially if these emotions are not experienced otherwise)
- Loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities
- Downplaying the impact of the excessive habits (“It’s not as bad as alcohol addiction”)
- Justifying excessive use (“Others play more than I do”)
- Excessive frustration or anxiety when “the server is down”
- Distorted perception of time (e.g., suddenly realizing that several hours have passed in what seemed like just one hour)
- Feelings of guilt when unable to join clan or guild members on a quest
- Difficulty abstaining from video games for more than a few days
- Experiencing a loss of personal control while playing
- Feelings of guilt or regret after spending much more time than intended with the game.
Give at least five physical symptoms of a video game addiction?
Five of :
- Sleep difficulties or significant change in sleep patterns
- Decreased personal hygiene
- Poor or irregular eating habits (e.g., waiting until extremely hungry before eating) - Headaches
- Dry or red eyes
- Sore fingers, neck, or back
- Poor physical health or weight gain
- Carpal tunnel syndrome (= syndrome du canal carpien).
What is the carpal tunnel syndrome ?
A numbness and tingling in the hand and arm caused by a pinched nerve in the wrist.
Give at least 5 of the behavioral symptoms of a video game addiction:
Five of :
- Decreased academic performance
- Less time spent on homework and studying
- Decreased work performance
- Aggression towards those who prevent or attempt to limit access to the video game
- Frequently playing the game while neglecting important responsibilities
- Spending more and more time with the video game
- Playing at the first available opportunity (e.g., as soon as getting home from work or school) - An inability to quit despite attempts to do so
- Staying up late into the night to play
- Eating meals while playing or skipping meals entirely
- When not playing, discussing the video game in online forums
- Large amounts of money spent on new games, expansion packs, micro-transactions, and computer upgrades
- Occasional gaming “binges” of 10 or more hours nonstop.
Give at least five of the relational symptoms showing a video game addiction ?
Five of :
- Lying to others about how much time is spent with the game
- Declining social invitations so that game playing can continue
- Less time spent with family and friends
- Increased concern expressed by others at the amount of gaming time
- A loss of real world friends, but an increase in virtual world friends
- Blaming others (“I would probably play less if you wouldn’t nag so much”) - Marital / relationship difficulties resulting from excessive play
- Decreased interest in sex.
What are the risk factors for video game addiction?
- Being male
- Having higher levels of trait aggression and neuroticism (Mehroof et al., 2010)
- Positively evaluating one’s personal intelligence and negatively evaluating one’s social skills - Favoring online role playing games
- Having a greater degree of impulsivity and limited ability to regulate emotions (Douglas et al., 2011)
- Having a lot of free time and little involvement in structured activities outside of work or school.
What are the four treatment possible for a video game addiction?
- One-to-one counseling with a psychologist.
- Family therapy.
- Video game addiction treatment centers.
- Wilderness therapy.
What are the issues currently found with video game addiction treatment methods?
- the patient as to recognize the need of changing their excessive gaming habits.
- professional / institutions rare.
- costs.
Which part of the brain is considered as the key to motivation and reward?
Ventral striatum -> bigger in gamers brain.
What were Kuhn’s findings about gray matter in the brain of gamers?
Gamers had more gray matter volume in the part of the brain known for reward and addiction and so might experience gaming asmore rewarding.
What are the believes of the social psychologist Andrew Przybylski regarding video game addiction?
- video games are not addictive the way cigarette and alcohol are.
- he believes that their is anything inherently addictive any more than other thing that people find fun.
What is Neuroimaging?
Methods fr visualizing characteristics of the brain, such as the size of its parts, blood flow to the parts and breakdown of nutrients.
It allow researchers to study the relationship between the effects of a stimulus and the functioning of the brain.
What does Neuroimaging studies show about exposure too violent video game and patterns of brain activation?
Activation of the prefrontal cortex and the amygdalae, which are thought to be associated with emotion, self-control, and agression, during play and after play.
-> increase activation of emotion and aggression with decrease in self-control.
What are violent video games significantly associated with ?
- increased aggressive behavior, thoughts and affect.
- increased physiological arousal.
- decreased pro social behavior.
Did violent video games have ever been linked to serious agressions?
High level of violent video game exposure have been linked to delinquency, fighting at school and during free play periods, and violent criminal behavior.
Are unrealistic video game violence devoided of effects on kids ?
Experimental studies has shown increase of agrgression after exposure to clearly unrealistic and fantasy violent video games.
What is the average age of video game players?
33 years old.
