Keyword : Internet Gaming Disorder, Esport, Emotional Regulation, Impulsivity
The growth of video games can be seen as problematic with regard to certain truly negative consequences on the life of the player following intensive use. Nevertheless, it is not easy to draw a clear line between the classic use of video games and a problematic behavior as defined in the field of behavioral addictions. This question may emerge when we look at esport, the competitive aspect of video games, where professional gamers have to win the various competitions in which they participate. This objective of victory therefore requires intensive training, and video games become a priority in the life of players.
The World Health Organization recognizes in ICD-11 internet gaming disorder (IGD) characterized by a loss of control over gaming, increasing priority given to gaming, continued or intensified activity despite the appearance of negative consequences and impaired functioning over a 12-month period (American Psychiatric Association, 2015 ; World Health Assembly, 2018). This category has been included in Section III of the DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, American Psychiatric Association, 2015). This classification involves 9 diagnostic criteria, based on the work of Griffiths (2005).
Nevertheless, some authors are opposed to the current finding that the problematic use of video games is a mental pathology. First of all, these criteria would not be sufficient to discriminate pathological gaming from non-problematic classic and recreational one (Deleuze and al., 2017). According to King and al. (2018), the conceptualization of this disorder is questionable, is it really a unique phenomenon ? A disorder that generates symptoms ? Or a coping strategy due to another underlying mental dysfunction ?
Scientific research with populations such as professional esport players would be an approach to consider in order to answer these questions. Esport players would meet all of the criteria of IGD for the purpose of performance and improvement in the level of play in a competitive activity. The conceptualization of potential disorders has not been able to keep up with the evolution of this culture and the various possible practices, hence the risk of “pathologizing” the use of video games. The aim of our study is to differentiate the psychological functioning of esport players from that of casual (occasional, possibly addicted) players by focusing on emotional regulation and impulsivity.
This study is composed of 286 video game players, contacted by internet, having played at least the month preceding the data collection, in April 2020. We investigated the disorder linked to the use of video games, two strategies of emotional regulation and the different dimensions of impulsivity. These questionnaires are respectively : the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale Short-Form (IGDS9-SF) (Pontes & Griffiths, 2015), the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) (Gross & John, 2003) and the French version of the UPPS – Impulsive Behavior Scale (Bilieux and al., 2014). The goal is to make comparisons of average scores between non-competitive, amateur and professional groups of players.
The ANOVA shows that professional gamers score significantly higher on the IGDS9 without qualifying as problem gamers. The professional gamers in our sample would not use an emotional regulation strategy, as assessed by the ERQ , that is different from the other groups of participants. In our study, the 3 groups of players interviewed only obtained different scores on the UPPS for the sub-component of lack of perseverance. Professional would be more perseverant compared to the other two groups.
The major limitation of our study concerns its main objective with regard to the methodological means employed. To provide details on the disorder of video game use by comparing this intensive use to that of professional gamers should have involved players with a problematic use. In our sample of recent participants, we do not find enough players with a disorder to compose a significant comparison group. Our study here provides details on the profile of gamers according to their level of competition, but provides very little information on individuals with real difficulties. Replicating this study by adding a group of individuals with problematic use would make it possible to compare IGDS9 scores, the use of regulation strategies and the impulsivity between competitive professional gamers and addicted players.
Words that I learned : main objective : objectif principal / sub-component : sous-composante / underlying : sous-jacent / impaired : perturbé / to involve : impliquer / the lack of : un manque de.
References :
American Psychiatric Association, Manuel diagnostique et statistiques des troubles mentaux, DSM-5, 5ème edition. Washington, D.C: American Psychiatric Publishing, 2013.
Billieux, J., Rochat, L., Van der Linden, M. (2014). L’impulsivité : Ses facettes, son évaluation et son expression clinique. Wavre, Belgique: Mardaga.
Deleuze, J., Nuyens, F., Rochat, L., Rothen, S., Maurage, P., & Billieux, J. (2017). Established risk factors for addiction fail to discriminate between healthy gamers and gamers endorsing DSM-5 Internet gaming disorder. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 6(4), 516‑524. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.6.2017.074
Griffiths, M.D. (2005). A “components” model of addiction within a biopsychosocial framework. Journal of Substance Use, 10, 191-197.
King, D. L., Delfabbro, P. H., Potenza, M. N., Demetrovics, Z., Billieux, J., & Brand, M. (2018). Internet gaming disorder should qualify as a mental disorder. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 52(7), 615‑617. https://doi.org/10.1177/0004867418771189
Sharpening the focus on gaming disorder. (2019). Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 97(6), 382‑383. https://doi.org/10.2471/BLT.19.020619