Is video game addiction an actual medical condition? Dr. Maressa Orzack, founder of the Computer Addiction Services program and researcher at Harvard Medical School, claims it is. She believes the problem is growing rapidly.
Having treated all types of addictions for more than 15 years, Orzack says there’s little difference between drug use, excessive gambling and heavy game playing.
She believes that up to 40 percent of more than 6 million players of the mega-popular World of Warcraft are clinically addicted to the game.
TwitchGuru talks with one of the foremost experts in the controversial field of video game addiction. Get the lowdown.
via Tom’s Hardware
And here’s a reminder about something we discuss too little:
Think of dopamine as a motivation chemical. We don’t actually crave treats, gambling, sex, or drugs, or video games. We crave dopamine.
And here’s an interesting vignette about dopamine-driven behavior: The Coolidge Effect
And here’s a discussion about ‘outsourcing temptations’ and a bit of updating on the fallacy of willpower:
willpower is a zero-sum game…
you only have so much of it…[and it gets worse], were you to redouble your efforts to plough through something by James Joyce, your cigarette habit might return, leaving you at risk of becoming the most cultured corpse in the morgue.
Families of Drug Addicts May Be Part of Their Problem
Once those closest to the problem can recognize that their moral superiority may be part of the cause, we might see an improvement in recovery rates.
more at Science Blog