Psychological and Social Implications Surrounding Internet and Gaming Addiction

349 Pages·2016·7.21 MB·English

by  Jonathan Bishop

Psychological and Social
Implications Surrounding
Internet and Gaming
Addiction
Jonathan Bishop
Centre for Research into Online Communities and E-Learning Systems,
Swansea, UK
A volume in the Advances in Psychology, Mental
Health, and Behavioral Studies (APMHBS) Book
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Psychological and social implications surrounding internet and gaming addiction / Jonathan Bishop, editor.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4666-8595-6 (hardcover) -- ISBN 978-1-4666-8596-3 (ebook) 1. Internet addiction. 2. Internet--Psychology.
3. Internet--Social aspects. 4. Compulsive gambling. I. Bishop, Jonathan, 1979-
RC569.5.I54P76 2015
616.85’84--dc23
2015012041

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Handbook of Research on Innovations in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Dementia
Panagiotis D. Bamidis (Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece) Ioannis Tarnanas (Aristotle University of
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Editorial Advisory Board
JasonBarratt,Centre for Research into Online Communities and E-Learning Systems, UK
MarkBeech,Centre for Research into Online Communities and E-Learning Systems, UK
MarkM.H.Goode,Cardiff Metropolitan University, UK
DariaJoannaKuss,Nottingham Trent University, UK
MarioLehenbauer-Baum,Sigmund Freud University, Austria
FrancisTimothyMazur,Centre for Research into Online Communities and E-Learning Systems, UK
KatharinaMittlböck,University of Vienna, Austria
JeanFrancesMorgan,Centre for Research into Online Communities and E-Learning Systems, Swansea, UK
HalleyM.Pontes,Nottingham Trent University, UK
ShefaliVirkar,Oxford Internet Institute, UK

xv
Foreword
SOCIAL MEDIA IN IDENTITY TRANSFER – WEB PRESENCE IN ORDINARY LIFE
Inordertotunetothisbook’sgenreandmessages,ithelpsifyouconsiderwebpresenceasatransfor-
mationalprocessandcatalytictoidentityandsocialawareness.Feelhappytomirroritsmainideasand
perspectivesagainstyourpriorideasonhowwechangedduringearliermediavenuesliketheradios,
telephone,TV,faxandearlycomputerapplicationslikethespreadsheetandwordprocessor.Itmaystrike
youthesimilarityinexcitementallthetime.Thecomingyearyoumayexpectfurthertransformations
totakeplace;Trolling,roletakinganddisruptivenewmodalitiesoflearning,playingandworkingwill
appear.Fastenyourseatbeltsplease!
Thebookthatyoujustopenedcanonlybepublishednowasweobviouslyneededmorethantwo
decadestobecomeawarethatwebpresenceandsurvivalisnotjustanextrapolationfromtheperiod
whereradio,telephoneandfaxwereruling.Whetherwetakethetermslikeaddiction,disorder,virtual-
ityorvicarious;itmeansthatwearenotcapabletoseewebpresenceasvitalforordinarylifeyet.We
needpathologiestoatleastframethenewphenomenalikepersonswhose“Life-on-the-Screen”(See
SherryTurkle’spublicationintheearlynineties)wecanonlyacceptifitfitstoextravagantlifestylesin
theerabefore.
Mostindicativeisthecautiousstepstakenbyeducation,careandindustrytoembracegamingas
seriouscontributiontoprimehumaneffortslikeworkingandlearning.Butalreadythescrupulousterm
“seriousgaming”revealsthatwearenotconvincedaboutitsurgencyyet;Seriousgamingislike“joy-
fulsuffering”;wedonotacceptitsrealnature.Whilegamingintendstowin,playingintendsto…..
loseourselves.Andhereiswherethenextdecadeneedstoprovidemoreadequatetermstodescribe
thetriangleplaying-working-learning.Wegivecontinuouseffortstokeeplabelingworkassacrificing
ourtimeforthesakeofouremployer.Wecannotbelievethathealth-caremightbetheacceptanceof
ageing.Weareafraidtogivecontroltoyoungsters,astheytendtodiveintofictitiousworldsinorderto
construeunknownunderstandingsofar.
Role-playinghasbeendiscoveredasenticingbeforeweentertherealsocialsetting.Currentlyrole-
playingislessexoticasitisalreadyinherentlypracticedinsocialmediafromtheveryearlybeginning
ofcomputersensation.PlayingofMassively-MultiplayerOnlineRole-PlayingGames(MMORPGs)can
beseenasawaytoexperimentwithone’sidentity.Trollinggoesfurtherandmanifestsinintentionally
causingangerandfrustration:onlineharassmentinahostilemanner.Nowondermanyofustendto
seetheextravaganceofcyberborgsaspotentialthreattosocietalconventionsandtolerance.Thisbook
makesyouawarethatthisscaleofaberrationsmightbeinterpretedindifferentways.Whenthefirst
bikesenteredontheroad,childrenusedtoaskadultpassengers:“AmIgoingwell?”Asthentheadult
asked:“Wheredoyouwanttogotothen?”thechildrenclaimed:“that’snoneofyourbusiness”.

Foreword
Itillustratesthatwetypicallytendtorefrainfromexplicitnavigationandtendtolandintocrisscross
explorationsofthegrassfieldswithnoideawhereearlierlearnersmadethelanes.Thisbookpretends
tohelpyouinconceivingideasonsocietyandwebtrends,withouttakingawayyourownintuitionon
whatsymptomsmightindicaterealtrendsandwhicharejusttransitionsonaveryshorttimescale.The
twocentralnotionsinthisbookareidentityandaddiction.Thisfirstoneisintransformationaspersons
getmoreandmoreconnectedwithouttheneedtolabeloneselftooneparticulargrouporsectarian.
Thetermaddictionsuggestedanunwantedsideeffect,whileinfactno-bodywouldlabelone’spassion
forreadingbooksorplayingthepianoasaddiction.Thisbookhelpsyoutomakeupyourmindandac-
knowledgethatweb-basedelementsinsocietyaregrowingandwillexertonourawarenesslikegravity;
firstwewillexperienceitasaload;laterwecannotmovewithoutit.
Piet Kommers
University of Twente, The Netherlands
Piet Kommers is an early pioneer in media for cognitive- and social support. His doctoral research explored methods for
hypertext and concept mapping in learning. Since 1982 he developed educational technology as an engineering approach for
learning and teaching. His main thesis is that technology is catalytic for human ambition and awareness. His main function
is associate professor in the University in Twente, The Netherlands and adjunct/visiting professor in various countries. He
taught more than fifteen bachelor-, master- and PhD courses and supervised more than 30 PhD students. He instigated and
coordinated the NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Cognitive Technologies in 1990 and a large series of Joint European
Research Projects in: authoring multimedia, web-based learning, teacher education, virtual 3d worlds, constructivist learning,
social media, web-based communities and international student exchange. UNESCO awarded his work in ICT for Education
in Eastern Europe with the title of Honorary Professor. The Capital Normal University in Beijing awarded his work with the
title of Honorary Doctor. He is member of advisory boards in ministries of education and academia of sciences in Singapore,
Finland and Russia. Piet Kommers is the initiator of the international journal for web-based communities and overall chair of
the IADIS conferences on societal applications of ICT. Since the late nineties he gave more than 40 invited and keynote lectures
at main conferences in the fields of education, media and communication. His books and journal articles address the social
and intellectual transformations at each transition from “traditional” into the “new” media. Instead of regarding media as
extrapolating, supplanting, vicarious or even disruptive, Piet’s view is that new media elicit and seduce both individuals and
organizations to reconsider human nature and challenge existential awareness at that very moment.
xvi
xvii
Preface
TheaimofthisbookistobringuptodatetheresearchintoInternetandgamingaddictionsothatitis
possibletodevisenewmethodstosolvethatproblemsthatarisefromprolongedandoveruseofInternet-
connectedandothergamingdevices.Theessenceoftheproblemisthattheexperiencethatresultfrom
Internetuseshowmanyofthesameproblemsasotherformsofaddiction.Impairedrelationshipswith
familyandfriends,disturbedsleeppatterns,reduceemploymentcapability,amongothers,arecommon
inalladdictions.Infactthatdifferencebetweenacompulsionandaddictionmaybesimplybethatthe
compulsionsharmtheindividual,butaddictionsharmothersalso.
Is Internet Addiction Real?
SayingthatpeoplecanbeaddictedtotheInternetislikesayingpeoplecanbeaddictedtotherealworld.
TheInternet,orWebisanenvironment,sopeoplecanonlybeaddictedtoaspectsoftheenvironment,
suchasbiddingoneBay,aspeopleareaddictedtoaspectsoftherealworld,suchasgamblingatcasi-
nos.SomesaythatfeelingsofwithdrawalfromtheInternetareevidenceofInternetAddiction.Indeed
inthestudyofso-calledInternetaddictiontherearetwoclearcamps.Theseincludethosewhobelieve
Internetaddictionshouldbepsychiatricdisorderinitsownright,andthosewhichinsiststhatInternet
addictionsufferersareactuallydependentonsomerewardingaspectorfunctionofbehaviourassociated
withInternetusethatcouldexistintherealworld(Yellowlees&Marks,2007).Thelatteroftheseis
thecampIastheauthorfitinto.
SomehavearguedthatsignificantuseoftheInternetismorelikelytobecorrelatedco-morbidlywith
psychiatriccondition(Haetal.,2006),whichmightmeanthatso-calledInternetaddictiondoesnotexist
initsownright,butthatthecompulsiveuseoftheInternetismorelikelytobeawayofresolvinginternal
conflictsduetotheinherentescapismassociatedwithInternetuse(Leung,2003).Ithasbeenargued
thatInternetaddictionisresistanttotreatmentandentailssignificantrisks,withhashighrelapserates
(Block,2008).ThiswouldsuggesttomethatInternetaddictionisnotapsychiatricconditionassome
suggest,becausethereisnosuchthing,aspeoplesimplyhavelifestylechoices,whichmayhaveonce
meantregularlywatchingtheTVorreadinganewspaperbutnowthisandothermediaisconsumedvia
theInternet(Bishop,2014).Thisbookisthereforeessentialforcuttingthroughthevariousideasaround
Internetaddiction,andindeedgamingaddiction,ormoregenerallydigitaladdiction.

Preface
Diagnostic Criteria in the Context of DSM-5
ThefirstsectionofthebooklooksattheDSM-5requestformoreresearchtobedoneontheInternet
gamingdisorder,providingsomeveryinterestingandimportantfindings.Thefirstchapter,byMario
Lehenbauer-BaumandMartinaFohringer,involvedasurveyof577peoplefromGermanspeakingareas,
findingthatanyfutureclassificationofInternetgamingdisordershouldavoidusingmeasuresoftap-
pingeuphoriaandcognitivesalience.ThenextchapterinthissectionisbyHalleyMPontesandMark
DGriffiths.ThischapterdevisestheInternetGamingDisorderTest(IGD-20)andtheInternetGaming
DisorderScale–ShortForm(IGD9-SF).Asimilardiagnostictestdevisedbymyself,ispresentedin
ChapterIIIinthissection,whichpresentsresultsofastudyin1,828youngpeople.Thisscaleisfor
digitaladdictionmoregenerally,andnotjustgamingaddiction.Bothshowtheimportanceofreliable
diagnosticscales,andasHalleyPontesandMarkGriffithsfound,developingsuchscalesarethefirst
steptowardsunificationandconsensusinthefieldofgamingstudies.ThischapterbyMarkGoodeand
myselfshowsthatachecklist,similartotheIGD9-SFofHalleyPontesandMarkGriffiths,providesa
reliablewayofscreeningthosewhomightshowsignsofproblematiccomputeruse.
Psychology and Behaviour Change
Section2openswithChapterIVbyKatharinaMittlböck,whichlooksattheworthanddangersofdif-
ferentroleplayinggames.Byfocusingonunderstandingtherolethepsycheplaysinmotivationsfor
enteringagamingspace,thechapterfindsthatendangeringthepsycheofaplayercanresultinchaos.
Thenextchapterinthesection,byAshuMGSoloandmyself,welookequallyattheeffectnegative
onlinebehaviourscanhaveonthewell-beingofusers.Itlooksatacasestudyofacouplewhereoneof
themspendsalotoftimeonline,affectingtherelationship.Itpresentsaframework,calledthetransitional
flowofpersuasionmodel,whichcanbeusedtohelpcouplesovercomethosechallengesfromsituations
whereoneofthepartnersissufferingfromdigitaladdiction.Italsoshowshowifsuchrelationshipsare
unlikelytoworkout,howitispossibletoavoidasituationwhereretaliatoryfeedbackfromoneofthe
couplesadverselyaffectstheothers.Thenextchapter,byDariaJoannaKuss,providesaqualitativeac-
countofhowaminorfascinationwiththeplayingofMassively-MultiplayerOnlineRole-PlayingGames
(MMORPGs)canresultinaddictive-likebehaviours,suchasthecraving,tolerance,andwithdrawal
symptomsonemightfindinotheraddictivebehaviours.ThefinalchapterinthissectionbyMarkBeech
andmyselflooksatthenatureinwhichrape-threatsandlanguagerelatingtostalkingaremanifestedon
Twitter,findingonthewholetheyaresaidinajokingornon-seriousfashion.Exploringthenarratives
madebyconvictedtroll,IsabellaSorley,itfindsthattrollswhosendrape-threats,especiallyunderthe
influenceofalcohol,thinkitisfunny.Thechapterconcludesthereforethatbeforeprosecutingsomeone
fortrolling,thenatureoftheirotherpostingsshouldbetakenintoaccount,andotheraspectsoftheir
postingssuchastheirbiographyandavatar,asnotallpostingsareintendedtoharm.
Theory and Methods
Section3openswithChapterVIIIbyThomasPhotiadisandNicosSouleles,whichpresentsatheoretical
modelbasedonaformulathatcombinesthreetheoreticalfactorscontributingtotheprocessofdesigning
3Davatars.Buildingonthefindingsofthepreviouschapteritfindsthatthesefactors,namelyaesthet-
ics,userexperienceandpsychology,putsforwardnewideasonwhatinformsthedesignprocessof3D
xviii