The World Health Organization now recognizes "gaming disorder" as an illness

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The United Nation's World Health Organization has just voted to add "gaming disorder" to their list of officially recognized illnesses. This decision was voted on unanimously by 194 members of the WHO, as part of the eleventh revision to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, which is referred to as by the much easier to remember term, ICD-11. Many companies within the gaming industry strongly opposed the choice, such as the ESA, who claimed that such a classification would only serve to "recklessly trivialize real mental health issues" and that the WHO lacks the proper medical studies to come to such a conclusion.

According to the newly defined illness, the definition of "gaming disorder" is the following:

Gaming disorder is characterized by a pattern of persistent or recurrent gaming behaviour (‘digital gaming’ or ‘video-gaming’), which may be online (i.e., over the internet) or offline, manifested by:

  1. impaired control over gaming (e.g., onset, frequency, intensity, duration, termination, context);
  2. increasing priority given to gaming to the extent that gaming takes precedence over other life interests and daily activities; and
  3. continuation or escalation of gaming despite the occurrence of negative consequences. The behaviour pattern is of sufficient severity to result in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning.
The pattern of gaming behaviour may be continuous or episodic and recurrent. The gaming behaviour and other features are normally evident over a period of at least 12 months in order for a diagnosis to be assigned, although the required duration may be shortened if all diagnostic requirements are met and symptoms are severe.

Gaming disorder is classified under addictive behaviors, next to excessive gambling, with the phrasing of the descriptions even being exactly the same between the two.

Gambling disorder is characterized by a pattern of persistent or recurrent gambling behaviour, which may be online (i.e., over the internet) or offline, manifested by:

  1. impaired control over gambling (e.g., onset, frequency, intensity, duration, termination, context);
  2. increasing priority given to gambling to the extent that gambling takes precedence over other life interests and daily activities; and
  3. continuation or escalation of gambling despite the occurrence of negative consequences. The behaviour pattern is of sufficient severity to result in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning.
The pattern of gambling behaviour may be continuous or episodic and recurrent. The gambling behaviour and other features are normally evident over a period of at least 12 months in order for a diagnosis to be assigned, although the required duration may be shortened if all diagnostic requirements are met and symptoms are severe.

The Australian Interactive Games and Entertainment Association, essentially that country's branch of the ESA, denounced the classification of over-indulgent gaming as a mental disorder, claiming that "[The IGEA] are concerned they reached their conclusion without the consensus of the academic community". They also believe that parental controls and moderating a balanced amount of playtime is essential, further stating, "the consequences of today's action could be far-reaching, unintended, and to the detriment of those in need of genuine help".

The ICD-11 will go into effect on January 1, 2022.

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Bedel

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In other news: water makes people to be wet.
Yeah, it's an illness. It's more than obvious. At least people with this problem will be able to get help more easily.
 
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FAST6191

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Much like the NHS one a few months back I am not sure what gaming warrants such a classification over the more general addictive/compulsive behaviours -- replace gaming with just about any activity in the first quoted section and you have something that I would have expected to see in any textbook covering mental addictions.
There is not even anything there to note potential differences between gaming and other activities -- gaming speaks to something in the general human psyche and is often geared such that rewards are easily triggered more than say addiction to observing the top of telephone poles, even if the ultimate treatment pathways are the same.

As for the denouncements by the various industry bodies. I am going to disagree with them there as well -- looking at the quoted section they almost seem to want to laugh at the idea that it can happen, not anything to do with the specifics here. That reminds me more of the tobacco and whatever lobbies of years past.
 

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Nice, so now the more conservative borderline nutjob parents in my parents' church's congregations who homeschool their kids and send them to boarding schools like those of the Hephzibah House have more things to demonize their kids' interests over. Not to mention, more money being spent on treating common sense problems as opposed to, say, trying to find a cure for cancer, Ebola (you can't say they haven't developed a cure if two or three people have been treated and got national attention for a day or two), and other, more serious health issues. Why not, IDK, focus more money on the "Vaccines = Autism" BS that, as someone who's on the higher functioning end of the Asperger's part of the spectrum, I can personally attest to being complete bullshit!?
 

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A well written designation.

It clearly draws a much better line between "video games are my hobby" and "I play so many video games that I don't sleep, eat or piss". The latter is a case of addictive behavior, and should be listed as an illness in much the same way we consider gambling addiction an illness that needs treating.

Properly designating this means that steps can be taken to produce good countermeasures against over addictive behavior. In addition, it shuts up the "if you play video games for more than 4 hours a week, you are addict" moral guardians (this is unironically an argument I always see being made.)
 

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Oh look another reduntant change that is here only to stroke ego of both radicalized leftists and radicalized conservatives when they will pretend to be "gaming specialists:.

...I'm getting more nervous, anxious and unhappy because of this kind of bs and not because of gaming. It's WHO and entire clown world that makes me more crazy...
 

chaoskagami

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Sleeping disorder is characterized by a pattern of persistent or recurrent sleeping behaviour regular or irregular manifested by:
  1. impaired control over ability to stay awake (e.g., onset, frequency, intensity, duration, termination, context);
  2. increasing priority given to sleeping to the extent that sleeping takes precedence over other life interests and daily activities; and
  3. continuation or escalation of sleeping despite the occurrence of negative consequences. The behaviour pattern is of sufficient severity to result in significant impairment in personal, family, social, educational, occupational or other important areas of functioning.
The pattern of sleeping behaviour may be continuous or episodic and recurrent. The sleeping behaviour and other features are normally evident over a period of at least 12 months in order for a diagnosis to be assigned, although the required duration may be shortened if all diagnostic requirements are met and symptoms are severe.

Modified quote above making a point.

In all honesty, this is just kind of silly. Gambling makes sense as an addiction because it leads to financial losses. But games? Unless we're talking gacha shit (read: gambling) then no.

What's next? Book addiction? Movie addiction? Anime addiction? Addiction addiction?
 

spotanjo3

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What they said is false.. absolutely false. I totally disagreed with them 1 million percent. SMH. I will just ignored them anyway. They are just DUMB people!
 

MiiJack

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Well, they might as well make an activity disorder (this could be also used as a template). What do I get if I proclaimed myself as a gamer addict /s?
 
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What's next? Book addiction? Movie addiction? Anime addiction? Addiction addiction?
As someone who took a tiny course in game design in Uni as an extra course, the difference between games and most other media you listed is that games are specifically designed to maximize user experience and involvement.

To keep players hooked, a game needs to have a compelling feedback loop (can be positive or negative, positive is rewarding you for success, negative is punishing for success). The addiction comes in if someone gets suckered in so far in this feedback loop they cannot recover themselves out of it and end up sacrificing their personal life, friends, family and with the advent of MTX and all the pox attached to that, income as well.

This
is the reason why it's important to designate it as an addiction.
 

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As someone who took a tiny course in game design in Uni as an extra course, the difference between games and most other media you listed is that games are specifically designed to maximize user experience and involvement.

To keep players hooked, a game needs to have a compelling feedback loop (can be positive or negative, positive is rewarding you for success, negative is punishing for success). The addiction comes in if someone gets suckered in so far in this feedback loop they cannot recover themselves out of it and end up sacrificing their personal life, friends, family and with the advent of MTX and all the pox attached to that, income as well.

This
is the reason why it's important to designate it as an addiction.

Thankfully, some of us remember back to a time when you had to git gud at a game to unlock the boss character (or the character who borrowed moves from other fighters until later in the series), and recognizes DLC (well, most of it anyways: it seems NRS at least makes the content after the game is officially out) and microtransactions for what they are: replacing skill with bribery to the top!
 
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chaoskagami

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As someone who took a tiny course in game design in Uni as an extra course, the difference between games and most other media you listed is that games are specifically designed to maximize user experience and involvement.

To keep players hooked, a game needs to have a compelling feedback loop (can be positive or negative, positive is rewarding you for success, negative is punishing for success). The addiction comes in if someone gets suckered in so far in this feedback loop they cannot recover themselves out of it and end up sacrificing their personal life, friends, family and with the advent of MTX and all the pox attached to that, income as well.

This
is the reason why it's important to designate it as an addiction.

I think it'd be more helpful to make a template addiction and stop caring what it is the person in question is addicted to. People can be addicted to anything that exists, frankly.

Also, MTX is the primary cause of the decline of the gaming industry to a mindless cash-cow - so they can be made illegal and I wouldn't give a rat's ass. I want my cheat codes back from the 90s.
 
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weatMod

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i know someone with this
they never went to school since 8th grade
never socialize
never leave the house
never leave their room
never leave their bed

are morbidly obese, 450 lbs
sit and and play xbox one for the last 6 years literally non stop
are literally like this


 
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