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Banned
Watching as a video game ensnares their child, many a parent has grumbled about "digital heroin," likening the flashing images to one of the world's most addictive substances.
Now, they may have backup: The World Health Organization announced "gaming disorder" as a new mental health condition included in the 11th edition of its International Classification of Diseases, released Monday.
"I'm not creating a precedent," said Dr. Vladimir Poznyak, a member of WHO's Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, which proposed the new diagnosis to WHO's decision-making body, the World Health Assembly. Instead, he said, WHO has followed "the trends, the developments, which have taken place in populations and in the professional field."
However, not all psychologists agree that gaming disorder is worthy of inclusion in the International Classification of Diseases, known as the ICD
Characteristics of gaming disorder
A diagnosis standard, the ICD defines the universe of diseases, disorders, injuries and other related health conditions. Researchers use it to count deaths, diseases, injuries and symptoms, and doctors and other medical practitioners use it to diagnose disease and other conditions. In many cases, health care companies and insurers use the ICD as a basis for reimbursement.
Overall, the main characteristics are "very similar" to the diagnostic features of substance use disorders and gambling disorder, he said. Gambling disorder "is another category of clinical conditions which are not associated with a psychoactive substance use but at the same time being considered as addictive as addictions."
For a diagnosis to be made, the negative pattern of behavior must last at least 12 months: "It cannot be just an episode of few hours or few days," Poznyak said. However, exceptions can be made when the other criteria are met and symptoms are severe enough.
"Millions of gamers around the world, even when it comes to the intense gaming, would never qualify as people suffering from gaming disorder," Poznyak said, adding that the overall prevalence of this condition is "very low."
"And let me emphasize that this is a clinical condition, and clinical diagnosis can be made only by health professionals which are properly trained to do that," he said.
'It's a little bit premature'
Anthony Bean, a licensed psychologist and executive director at The Telos Project, a nonprofit mental health clinic in Fort Worth, Texas, counts himself as a member of the camp that opposes inclusion of gaming disorder in the ICD.
"It's a little bit premature to label this as a diagnosis," Bean said. "I'm a clinician and a researcher, so I see people who play video games and believe themselves to be on the lines of addicted." In his experience, they're actually using gaming "more as a coping mechanism for either anxiety or depression."
Forthcoming research shows that gaming is a secondary diagnosis in coping with a primary diagnosis of anxiety and depression, Bean said: "When anxiety and depression is dealt with, the gaming goes down significantly."
The criteria being used by WHO to define gaming disorder in the ICD are "too broad," he said, while the mild, moderate or severe versions of the disorder have not been adequately delineated. Diagnosing a patient with gaming disorder, then, would be based on the "very subjective experience of clinicians," he said.
"And even most clinicians would probably agree that they don't understand the concept for video games because they're not immersed in that world or experience," he added.
Ultimately, Bean is not saying gaming disorder doesn't exist, he just thinks "it's not really a good idea to go forward with this [diagnosis]. ... It really opens the door for anything to be a sickness."
CNN
Now, they may have backup: The World Health Organization announced "gaming disorder" as a new mental health condition included in the 11th edition of its International Classification of Diseases, released Monday.
"I'm not creating a precedent," said Dr. Vladimir Poznyak, a member of WHO's Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse, which proposed the new diagnosis to WHO's decision-making body, the World Health Assembly. Instead, he said, WHO has followed "the trends, the developments, which have taken place in populations and in the professional field."
However, not all psychologists agree that gaming disorder is worthy of inclusion in the International Classification of Diseases, known as the ICD
Characteristics of gaming disorder
A diagnosis standard, the ICD defines the universe of diseases, disorders, injuries and other related health conditions. Researchers use it to count deaths, diseases, injuries and symptoms, and doctors and other medical practitioners use it to diagnose disease and other conditions. In many cases, health care companies and insurers use the ICD as a basis for reimbursement.
Overall, the main characteristics are "very similar" to the diagnostic features of substance use disorders and gambling disorder, he said. Gambling disorder "is another category of clinical conditions which are not associated with a psychoactive substance use but at the same time being considered as addictive as addictions."
For a diagnosis to be made, the negative pattern of behavior must last at least 12 months: "It cannot be just an episode of few hours or few days," Poznyak said. However, exceptions can be made when the other criteria are met and symptoms are severe enough.
"Millions of gamers around the world, even when it comes to the intense gaming, would never qualify as people suffering from gaming disorder," Poznyak said, adding that the overall prevalence of this condition is "very low."
"And let me emphasize that this is a clinical condition, and clinical diagnosis can be made only by health professionals which are properly trained to do that," he said.
'It's a little bit premature'
Anthony Bean, a licensed psychologist and executive director at The Telos Project, a nonprofit mental health clinic in Fort Worth, Texas, counts himself as a member of the camp that opposes inclusion of gaming disorder in the ICD.
"It's a little bit premature to label this as a diagnosis," Bean said. "I'm a clinician and a researcher, so I see people who play video games and believe themselves to be on the lines of addicted." In his experience, they're actually using gaming "more as a coping mechanism for either anxiety or depression."
Forthcoming research shows that gaming is a secondary diagnosis in coping with a primary diagnosis of anxiety and depression, Bean said: "When anxiety and depression is dealt with, the gaming goes down significantly."
The criteria being used by WHO to define gaming disorder in the ICD are "too broad," he said, while the mild, moderate or severe versions of the disorder have not been adequately delineated. Diagnosing a patient with gaming disorder, then, would be based on the "very subjective experience of clinicians," he said.
"And even most clinicians would probably agree that they don't understand the concept for video games because they're not immersed in that world or experience," he added.
Ultimately, Bean is not saying gaming disorder doesn't exist, he just thinks "it's not really a good idea to go forward with this [diagnosis]. ... It really opens the door for anything to be a sickness."
CNN
