Gaming Disorder in Children and Adolescents: Risk Factors and Preventive Approaches

• DOI: 10.1007/s40429-020-00337-5
• Publication Date: 2020-10-28T21:07:23Z
• Authors: Patrick K. Bender; El-Lim Kim; Douglas A. Gentile
• Keywords: 03 medical and health sciences; 0302 clinical medicine; Risk factors; Gaming disorder; Prevention; Adolescents; Children; Video game addiction; 3. Good health

Purpose of Review: Gaming disorder can play a role in child and adolescent psychopathology, as research has associated gaming disorder with a range of negative psychosocial outcomes. Since any dysfunctional behavior can have important long-term consequences, approaches to prevent gaming behavior in youth from becoming problematic are clearly called for. In this paper, we discuss some of the risk factors that have been associated with gaming disorder in youth. Recent Findings: Potential risk factors for gaming disorder in youth include attention problems, emotion dysregulation, problematic family relationships, and in-game needs satisfaction at the expense of needs satisfaction in daily life. These factors are related not only to gaming disorders but also to some of the other mental health issues that gaming disorder has been associated with. Summary: Possible prevention strategies could focus on reducing attentional and cognitive issues among youth, which could be implemented in school settings via group training sessions. Approaches targeting emotion regulation skills would also be useful. Early intervention to alleviate poor family functioning could also be considered.