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Videogame-aholics
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Sunday, June 11, 2006
10:57:00 AM EDT
Hearing Shape Shifter -- Josie and the Pussycats Soundtrack
It had to happen: the first detox center for video game players has opened up:
Video games may look innocent, but they can be as addictive as gambling or drugs - and just as hard to kick, says Keith Bakker, director of Amsterdam-based Smith & Jones Addiction Consultants.
Bakker already has treated 20 video game addicts, aged 13 to 30, since January. Some show withdrawal symptoms, such as shaking and sweating, when they look at a computer.
His detox program begins in July. It will run four to eight weeks, including discussions with therapists and efforts to build patients' interests in alternative activities.
"We have kids who don't know how to communicate with people face-to-face because they've spent the last three years talking to somebody in Korea through a computer," Bakker said. "Their social network has completely disappeared."
I'm not entirely sure I believe video games are addictive in the same way as drugs -- I'd want to see the data for a statement like that -- but I certainly believe that for some people, playing games tips over from being a fun way to spend some time to being a way of life, and all those World of Warcraft relationships aside, that's just not a good way to live. As with all things, moderation in video games is key.
I would personally also worry that some overly suspicious parents might think their kids are video game addicts when in fact they're just moody and bored -- i.e., being teens in their "sullen" phase. In which case, bursting through the bedroom door and declaring the kid is high on Nintendo isn't exactly going to solve things.
Of course, I can play video games until my wrists snap. So what do I know.
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10:57:00 AM EDT
Hearing Shape Shifter -- Josie and the Pussycats Soundtrack
Videogame-aholics
It had to happen: the first detox center for video game players has opened up:
Video games may look innocent, but they can be as addictive as gambling or drugs - and just as hard to kick, says Keith Bakker, director of Amsterdam-based Smith & Jones Addiction Consultants.
Bakker already has treated 20 video game addicts, aged 13 to 30, since January. Some show withdrawal symptoms, such as shaking and sweating, when they look at a computer.
His detox program begins in July. It will run four to eight weeks, including discussions with therapists and efforts to build patients' interests in alternative activities.
"We have kids who don't know how to communicate with people face-to-face because they've spent the last three years talking to somebody in Korea through a computer," Bakker said. "Their social network has completely disappeared."
I'm not entirely sure I believe video games are addictive in the same way as drugs -- I'd want to see the data for a statement like that -- but I certainly believe that for some people, playing games tips over from being a fun way to spend some time to being a way of life, and all those World of Warcraft relationships aside, that's just not a good way to live. As with all things, moderation in video games is key.
I would personally also worry that some overly suspicious parents might think their kids are video game addicts when in fact they're just moody and bored -- i.e., being teens in their "sullen" phase. In which case, bursting through the bedroom door and declaring the kid is high on Nintendo isn't exactly going to solve things.
Of course, I can play video games until my wrists snap. So what do I know.
Written by johnmscalzi Blog about this entry |
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6/11/06 12:13 PM
I see it as being no different from the telephone, with the exception of computer people being able to not answer a question/comment for 20 minutes without being considered rude. You can also LOL when you're not really LOLing, and nobody knows the better... but we'd be picking nits once we got that deep into it.
I doubt whoever wrote this article is a stay-at-home-Mom. They are probably in an office all day, surrounded by people. If they were required to stay within earshot of two napping children all day, they could stare at the TV or the walls.... or go fire up some Halo 2. All are about equal as far as social skills are concerned.
That said, when my husband got hurt in the Army and came home... and granted, he was in a cast- he played Madden for like 13 straight hours one day, with a few rotating shifts of buddies. I was just glad to see him enjoying himself.
Finally, remember that the media only shows beautiful people, while there are many people out there so ugly or twisted that no one else wants to hang out with them... especially in the teen years. Some first person shooter catharsis is probably actually kinda saving some lives.
I see this more as a marketing job for the addiction counseling people than any real threat to America.