Pwned By Addiction

Pwned By Addiction

The most recent round of accusations that video games are addictive is just like all the rest. It shows a correlation between video games and addictive personality. What all these studies fail to prove is the cause and effect. In order to prove that “A” causes “B” (video games cause addiction, respectively) you must show that (1) “B” didn’t exist before “A” (2) there is nothing else that causes “B”, and (3) “B” does not cause “A”. In all three instances, studies cannot prove anything of the sort. On the contrary, addiction probably existed before video games, ie. addiction to a baby bottle, toys, or food. An addictive personality causes the addictive behavior.

I am willing to bet that in every instance that a study finds a case of “video game addiction” the subject has several other addictive problems. They will be the same people that get addicted to food, alcohol, drugs, sex, gambling, fitness (yes fitness… the Adonis complex), and even work.

In other words, we are all missing the point. Video game addiction is only a symptom of a much larger issue.

When a study like this comes out and states that 1 in 10 youths are addicted to video games, what they should really state is that 1 in 10 youths are addicted. Then we can finally begin discourse about the real problem with youths… which I could bet starts with their parents.

Source: http://kotaku.com/5219397/study-85-percent-of-kids-gamers-pathological-gamers

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