Can Esports Cause Gaming Addiction?
Can Esports Cause Gaming Addiction?
Gaming addiction is no different from other forms of addiction, although it is far less destructive and cheaper. It costs almost nothing to play video games all day and your health won’t decline as quickly as it does if you have a drug or alcohol problem. But the effects are still visible, both around your eyes and in your daily life.
Symptoms of Gaming Addiction
People who are addicted to video games play a lot more than their schedule permits, even when there’s a heavy price to pay for this behaviour. For instance, if you know you should be working on a project or studying for an exam but instead of doing that you spend all your time gaming, that’s a clear sign of addiction.
Another symptom is trying to reduce to a minimum all other activities in your life, in order to have more time for gaming.
A third symptom is that you don’t have patience with anything that involves effort and does not give you instant gratification. If you’re working on a math problem and can’t find the solution in 5 minutes, you give up and go back to playing video games.
Symptoms like these indicate that you probably have a gaming addiction and should consider staying away from all video games for a while.
Can Esports Lead to a Gaming Addiction?
Esports are simply competitive video games. So in that sense, they can certainly make you addicted to gaming. However, what you need to understand is that the problem is not the games themselves. It’s the lack of purpose and discipline in your life. On their own, esports are not dangerous at all. In fact, they’re the least addictive types of games that you can play. Because they tend to be difficult and make you suffer more than you’d think. Nobody likes to lose or get into heated arguments with angry teammates. But after you become good at something and start winning frequently, that itself is addictive.
The reward you get after every victory, the feeling that you’re becoming better with every passing day, and the satisfaction that comes from successfully collaborating with others is what makes many people addicted to esports. However, if you already have these things in your real life, you will not develop an addiction to video games, no matter how fun they may be. At the fundamental level, what you want is to feel good. And as long as you have that feeling and don’t depend on esports alone to give meaning to your life, you don’t need to worry about it.
Statistics And People You Should Contact
Studies indicate that gaming addiction affects anywhere between 1% and 10% of those who play video games. In most cases, the problem is caused by stress, anxiety, and depression. A person affected by these issues retreats into video games as a form of coping with their situation.
For a detailed analysis of the problem, visit www.netaddiction.co.nz. The team behind the website specializes in gaming addiction and you can contact them for help.