Monday, June 10, 2013

Relationships Built Through Online Gaming


                                                    Build It One Way Or The Other

             People worldwide are becoming addicted.  The disease is like no other. It infiltrates households, destroys relationships, and changes characters and personalities.  It can also develop healthy, enjoyable, interactive, and long lasting relationships.  The hosts it chooses have no immunity once it’s in their systems.  As with any addiction, it needs continual feeding.  So it constantly attacks the nervous system producing a kind of anxiety that just can’t wait.  It’s true, online gaming can build relationships one way or the other.  So if you’re addicted, why not come out with something tangible. Whether it is fantasy sports such as football, basketball, or baseball, it can become addictive. Other gaming types at times can produce a more serious addiction.  Games like “World of Warcraft,” “Call of Duty,” and online gambling are games that are not seasonal; they can be accessed and are available at all times.  With the onset of Xbox live, gamers playing compatible games can connect worldwide.  During this worldwide connection a relationship (virtual of course) can develop.  So you ask, what does addiction have to do with building relations through online gaming?    

Online Gaming can be addictive, but it can also produce positive, productive, healthy relationships.  People can network; friends, and families, can play together.  Anthony Rotolo, a professor at Syracuse University who studies social networking, said in an article written in Men’s Health magazine (2012) that “he has friends whose long term relations began through playing together online.”  Think about it this, every person that consumes alcohol is not an alcoholic, but many business deals have been made during happy hour.  Families can get together and play games, as well as exercise together.  They can create separate profiles, and use them to track, and compete against each other.  Families can have their own Olympics!  Online gaming can be beneficial in fight to maintain family time.      

Online gaming can develop other competitive, healthy relationships as well.  Let’s take fantasy football for example and mainly because it can be considered seasonal, is a game that invites friendly competition.  It can enhance previous relationships as well as introduce new relationships in the process. Other gaming activities can do the same but for this blog, fantasy football will be used.  For instance, you can get four people together and start a league.  If those four each ask two other people to join that do not have a relationship with the initial four, the networking process has begun.  It can start earlier just with league rules and setup but it generally kicks off (no pun intended) with the draft process.  Team owners began vying for players, strategizing for picks, and communicating for trade and waiver position.  When the season starts, personal numbers, email addresses, and the like are exchanged.  People begin bonding with others through gaming.  Week in and week out you are communicating with divisional rivals and others outside your division.  The friend of your friend has now become a friend of yours.  You may be visiting a new city and need information as simple as directions to a good restaurant, your online gaming experience has helped you develop a new relationship with someone in the area who will not only direct you but will meet at the restaurant.  Employment almost always somehow comes up.  Someone in your league may be out of a job when others may have information about job openings and freely pass it along.  It’s that friend of your friend, which has now become a friend of yours through online gaming.  When the season ends, some leagues get together for what some may deem their “Superbowl party” where they place the league champion’s name on a plaque and present it to him.  People travel from all over the United States for this relationship building event discovered through online gaming.       

There is another side to this phenomenal relationship building process.  John Sutter of CNN (2012) reported that South Korea may possibly be leading the way in the identification and treatment of gaming and internet addiction.  He states that “after wiring the nation with the world’s fastest broadband infrastructure, South Korea’s government spends millions per year to identify and treat gaming and internet addicts.” 

To treat this addiction, South Korea has now instituted what they call the “Cinderella law.”  This law blocks those under the age of 16 from accessing gaming sites after midnight, but what does it do for others?  How does this help those already infected with

such a debilitating disease, those that are older?  The addiction is being treated like other addictions.  In South Korea, this gaming addiction is recognized as a disease in need of treatment.         

CNN’s (2012) feature on “Gaming Reality” allowed Dr. Han Doug-Hyun, a physician on staff at Chung-Ang University Hospital in Seoul, South Korea, the opportunity to identify a “top 5” list of warning signs for this addiction.  The first sign listed is a disruption in regular life patterns.  He contends that if a person plays games all night long and sleeps in the daytime, this can be a warning to seek professional help.  His second contention is the loss of job or frequent school absenteeism due to gaming.  His third sign is the need to play longer.  He calls this the “bigger fix,” it’s the idea that you need more time to duplicate that initial thrill, but you never can, you’re always chasing it.  The fourth sign is that of withdrawal; Dr. Han suggests that some gaming addicts become irritable or anxious when they disconnect.  Finally, the continual craving that those addicted to gaming experience is the fifth sign listed by Han.  All these seem similar to other types of addictions including drug, alcohol, gambling and sex addicts. 

So how are these relationships developed?  How can we effectively use this online gaming medium for building other healthy relations?  The process of rehabilitation is one way to help addicted gamers build healthy, new, productive, relationships.  With many recovering addicts positive relationships occur through different types of support groups.  Let’s not forget that some online gambling is considered online gaming.  

 As of today the United States does not recognize Internet gaming as an addiction.  The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) found that 68% of United States (U.S.) households are playing video games (ESA, 2009).  Science Daily reported Studies done by Iowa State University found that 8.5 percent of gamers between the ages of 8 and 18 are clinically addicted (Science Daily2009).  However, the addiction is not listed in the official Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.  The term “Internet Use Disorder” has been proposed by the American Psychiatric Institute as a possible listing worthy of endorsement (look out for the term “pathological gamers”).  These addictions require treatment and support groups such as Online Gamers Anonymous.  The groups have developed recovery systems just for online gaming addicts.  Like other addictions OGA’s recovery process includes twelve step programs. They also provide access to a 24 hour online chat for additional support.  These groups, developed through treatment, provide several options for success through relationships.  “Warcraft Widows,” an online support group, was developed in 2005 for those whose partners play a popular online game, “World of Warcraft” (over 10 million players; Gamasutra.com, 2008). The purpose of this group, which boasts 4000 members, is to “provide solace to all those ignored loved ones” whose partners’ play the popular online game, “World of Warcraft” (DeMarco, 2006).  In other words gaming can become addictive and destroy relationships with friends and loved ones while building unhealthy relations with other gamers.  From this addiction new relations can be built with other addicted gamers that may someday turn into healthy relationships.  You can build these new relationships through the rehabilitation process.  The support groups available have the same goal in mind as with many other treatment groups and that is to build supportive relationships capable of helping addicts succeed with recovery.  

Gamers have choices, and with those choices come consequences.  Some choices end with gamers sitting in a circle waiting their turn to introduce themselves to new found friends saying “Hi my name is Such and Such and I’m an addict.”  Other choices allow gamers to monitor their online gaming experience, maintain that happy medium, show some restraint, and develop positive relationships, while enhancing the family environment through gaming without losing their job, their home, a spouse or their life.  Families can have a game night, playing "Wii Fit," or "Wii Olympics".  Friends across the country can enjoy competitive relationships with online gaming.  Either way, the relationships that can be developed may be well worth the time.         

 
Sources:

www.cnn.com/2012/08/05/tech/.../gaming-addiction-warning-sign.

www.theesa.com/facts/gameplayer.asp

www.gamasutra.com/view/.../gamasutras_top_20_trends_of_2008.

http://www.nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR17/hertlein.pdf

The Qualitative Report 2012 Volume 17, Article 15, 1-48

http://www.recovery.org/topics/about-the-online-gamers-anonymous-12-step-recovery-program/

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090420103547.htm

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3 comments:

  1. This blog is rather confusing because it goes from talking about how online gaming can produce positive, productive and healthy relationships, then jumps to how you know when you are addicted to online gaming. It also shares a piece on why the United States does not see online gaming as an addiction. I am going to clear one thing up, and that is how online gaming has a negative effect on relationships.

    When people are addicted to playing games, the gamers spend so much time and effort playing that their personal relationships become neglected and at times can even disappear completely. Among addicted gamers who are married, up to 50 percent report a strain in their marriage as a result of their addiction (Negative Effects of Online Gaming, 2013). Addicted gamers also neglect the responsibilities of everyday life such as school and work (Negative Effects of Online Gaming, 2013).

    Relationships are not destroyed based solely by the amount of time the gamer is playing. There are also instances when the gamer talks so much about their specific games or game, that people want to keep their distance from them. They can’t, or won’t, engage in real world conversations or be a source of support or encouragement to friends and family (Kuzma, 2012). Because their friends talk about other things, they begin to feel left out, which in turn causes them to feel irritated or offended. It doesn’t occur to these gamers that they’ve chosen to be left out by devoting all their time to gaming (Kuzma, 2012).

    This lack of social interaction that results from obsessive gaming can have long-term social consequences. An addicted teenager won’t develop effective social skills, which will hinder his ability to develop and maintain healthy relationships in college and beyond (Kuzma, 2012). The social awkwardness created by the isolationism of gaming addiction, unfortunately, feeds the addiction. The gaming addict will likely retreat back to his online world where relationships are easier and already waiting for him (Negative Effects of Online Gaming, 2013).

    While all of these aspects seem to harm relationships, one of the most harmful aspects of gaming seems to be the resulting arguments and disrupted bedtime habits. These problems seemed to be compounded for partners of new gamers. “When you argue about something and when that something gets in the way of you spending time together as a couple, that’s going to be a problem,” says study author Neil Lundberg, Ph.D. (Kuzma, 2012).

    The Science Daily reported studies done by Iowa State University mentioned in the writing above found that 8.5 percent of gamers between the ages of 8 and 18 in the United States are clinically addicted (Science Daily, 2009). This definitely shows that online gaming IS a problem that is rapidly growing and affecting our relationships with others outside the gaming world.

    Sources

    Kuzma, C. (2012, February 16). Play Games with your Marriage. In Relationships. Retrieved July 19, 2013, from http://news.menshealth.com/love-me-love-my-avatar/2012/02/16/

    Nearly 1 In 10 Youth Gamers Addicted To Video Games. (2009, April 21). In Science Daily. Retrieved July 19, 2013, from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/04/090420103547.htm

    Negative Aspects of Online Gaming . (2013). In Social Consequences of Online Gaming Addiction. Retrieved July 19, 2013, from http://onlinegamingaddiction.web.unc.edu/negative-aspects-of-online-gaming/

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  2. Online gaming addiction may seem unreal to some, but to others it’s a very real everyday struggle just like any other addiction such as drugs or alcohol. Coming from an individual that does not participate in any online gaming activities, I wasn’t aware of the severity of this particular addiction. That is until I read Tyrone’s blog entry. This online gaming phenomenon is increasing every year. According to the NPD group’s online gaming report for 2013 (company providing global information and advisory services for better business decisions) there has been a significant growth in the number of gamers playing online along with the hours spent gaming in one week (gameindustry.biz). The report also revealed that 72% of US respondents reported using online games, which has increased from 67% last year. The increase in use of technological devices such as smartphones, ipads, and laptops has only helped the online gaming scene thrive. The NPD revealed that the increase in online game time was reflected across every device. Mobile devices saw a double-digit percentage point increase this year, with 56% of gamers using them to play online (gameindustry.biz).
    An article published in 2012 from forbes.com reported that the PC game called League of Nations was the most played online game in North America and Europe with gamers reaching nearly 1.3 billion hours in gameplay (Forbes.com). World of Warcraft showed a slight decline in game time, but still managed to take on second place. This year witnessed the release of a new game that is creating quite a buzz in the online gaming world. The popular game is known as Dota 2. It’s a multiplayer online battle arena video game produced by Valve Corporation (Wikipedia). A recent report from April of this year placed Dota 2 above the League of Nations as the most played game on PC (pcgamer.com). A person who doesn’t participate in these games can only wonder what it is about them that is so addicting.
    The design of video games is said to be similar to the design of those games found at a casino. Video-game-addiction.org listed five things that make a video game addicting: The high score, beating the game, role-playing, discovery, and relationships. Dr. Michael Fraser, a clinical psychologist and professor at Weill Cornell Medical College said, “video game and Internet addiction usually point to other mental problems including anxiety, depression and trouble forming healthy relationships (nydailynews.com). Tyrone introduced some insightful information on how to get help if you have an online gaming addiction. In addiction to Tyrone’s advice, an article published in the Journal of CyberTherapy and Rehabilitation reveals that cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is a recommended treatment method for gaming addiction (King et al. 2010). Computer gaming addiction involves setting healthy goals, monitoring gaming patterns, changing behavioral habits, and challenging thoughts that maintain or intensify video game addiction (King et al. 2010). Online gaming addiction is a very real struggle to some. With the continual rise of Internet usage it’s highly likely that we will continue to see a rise in online gaming addiction in our society.



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  3. King et al. (2010). Cognitive behavioral therapy for problematic video game players: Conceptual considerations and practice issues. Journal of CyberTherapy and Rehabilitation, Fall 2010, 261 - 273.


    What Makes a Video Game Addictive?. (n.d.). Video Game Addiction . Retrieved July 18, 2013, from http://www.video-game-addiction.org/what-makes-games-addictive.html

    Lhati, E. (2013, May 20). Dota 2 breaks concurrent Steam players record (again) | News | PC Gamer. PC Game Reviews, News & Features | PC Gamer. Retrieved July 20, 2013, from http://www.pcgamer.com/2013/05/20/dota-2-breaks-concurrent-steam-players-record-again/

    Miller, T. (2013, March 25). Video game addiction and other Internet compulsive disorders mask depression, anxiety, learning disabilities . Daily News. Retrieved June 18, 2013, from www.nydailynews.com/life-style/health/kids-addicted-video-games-violent-experts-article-1.1298338

    Sinclair, B. (2013, May 2). 72% of gamers play online - NPD | GamesIndustry International. GamesIndustry International. Retrieved July 20, 2013, from http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2013-05-02-72-percent-of-gamers-play-online-npd

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