Assessment of Video Game Addiction among Medical Students at Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute - A Cross Sectional Study

Introduction

The 11th Revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) defines gaming disorder as a pattern of gaming behaviour characterised by impaired control over gaming, increasing prioritisation of gaming over other activities to the point where gaming takes precedence over other interests and daily activities, and escalation of gaming despite the occurrence of negative consequences.¹ Additionally, the gamers should be alert to any changes in their physical, psychological, and social functioning that could be connected to their pattern of gaming activity.² The behaviour pattern must be severe enough to significantly affect personal, familial, social, educational, occupational life and it must have been present for at least a year. According to studies, just a small proportion of those who participate in digital or video gaming experience gaming disorder.³ However, individuals who play video games should be conscious of how much time they invest in it, particularly if it interferes with other daily tasks.⁴

Materials and Methods

This cross-sectional study was conducted at Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI) from May 2023 to July 2023. Medical students from first year to fifth year of MBBS along with internship phase students of Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI) were enrolled for this study. All the participants who gave written informed consent to participate in the study were included.

Assessment Tool

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) 7-item Gaming Addiction Scale (GAS) was used to determine the proportion of addicted medical undergraduates. The conceptual based 7-item Game Addiction Scale (GAS) scale was created exclusively to evaluate gaming. Each item on the GAS is prefixed by the statement “During the last six months, how frequently” and is scored on a 5-point Likert scale (1=never, 2=rarely, 3=sometimes, 4=often, and 5=very often). According to Lemmens et al. hypothesis, those who scored "sometimes" or more on all seven items were classified as ‘monothetic gamers’ ("pathological gaming"), while those who scored "sometimes" or more on at least half of the items (four to six of the seven items) were classified as ‘polythetic gamers’.⁵

The responses of the study participants to DSM-5 Gaming Addiction Scale questionnaire are summarized in Table 4 Category of the gamers are summarized in Table 5.

Time spent on gaming monthly (p= 0.038), and device used of gaming (p=0.030) were significantly associated with category of the gamers. Average time spent on gaming hours/ day, type of games, game genre / category, reasons for playing games, Quality of sleep being affected by internet usage at night were not significantly associated with category of the gamers.

Discussion

In the current study, it was observed that male participants played more mobile games and scored better on the gaming addiction scale than female participants. Similar findings were reported by Ko et al. in Taiwan, where they observed that men played more online games, scored higher on the severity scale for online gaming addiction, and reported lower levels of satisfaction than women.⁶

The current study showed that participants with more gaming and playing duration (in years) had higher GAS scores. According to research by Wang et al. from Hong Kong, longer average weekly duration of gaming was closely associated with gaming addiction.⁷

According to Park et al., gamers played different game genres for a variety of reasons that are each differently connected to psychological functioning. The level of anxiety changed significantly depending on the genre. In order to forecast the likelihood of negative outcomes and behavioural changes, it may be helpful to examine the gaming patterns of players.⁸

Similarly, the study done by Canale et al. found a link between higher GAS scores and subjective stress. This could be the case because when people are faced with difficult conditions, playing video games might help them meet their search for psychological escape.⁹

Conclusion

Medical students who were the subjects of the investigation frequently used their smartphones. The growing incidence of youth game addiction,especially among medical students is a problem that has to be addressed quickly. The danger of addiction may increase with excessive smartphone use. Raising consciousness about gaming addiction, setting time limits for playing, and engaging in outdoor activities can aid in solving the issue. Integrating health education on mobile phone usage and responsible smartphone use will minimise negative effects on daily life. We conclude that undergraduate medical students require intervention to lessen addiction to games. Additional investigations are required to examine various efficient intervention techniques for young people addicted to gaming.

Financial support & Sponsorship

Nil

Conflict of interest

Nil

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to thank the dean and director of Bengaluru Medical College and Research Institute, Bengaluru. Karnataka.