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The Truth Behind Video Game Addiction

It was on Thanksgiving 2001 when Elizabeth Wooley found her son dead in front of the computer.   Shawn Wooley, 21, had shot himself to death at his Hudson, Pa. apartment because of depression, the social isolation and personality changes that occurred due to his 12-hour days of playing the online computer game EverQuest.  

Shawn had sacrificed everything so that he could play for hours, ignoring his family, quitting his job and losing himself completely in a virtual world where hundreds of thousands of gamers worldwide engross themselves in a never-ending fantasy world of multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG) such as EverQuest and World of Warcraft.  

Elizabeth Wooley, Shawn's mother, said he had been diagnosed with epilepsy and depression before committing suicide at the age of 21.   Shawn had begun playing the game EverQuest in the early months of 2000.   Just weeks before Shawn committed suicide, he had become evicted from his apartment and had to move back in with his mother.   Elizabeth said this was the "beginning of the end" for Shawn.

Only a week before committing suicide, Elizabeth said Shawn had quit his job at the pizza parlor so that he could play for more than 12 hours a day.   He also had purchased a gun for unknown reasons to her.   Elizabeth said her son was pushed over the edge by something that happened within the game, possibly when a friend of Shawn's online stole his character's game money and refused to return it.   She said Sean cried hysterically when this event in the game took place.

Shawn is one of millions of video gamers across the globe that succumbs to the end-all, be-it-all world of gaming.  

"I've talked to a lot of gamers and they end up becoming addicted after the first day," said Elizabeth Wooley.   "They end up leaving their job, being evicted from where they live, hiring therapists, all because of this video game."

Wooley is referring to the online game market that has "hypnotized" gamers both young and old in the world who play two of the most "addictive" computer games ever made; World of War Craft and Everquest.

Shortly after her son committed suicide, Elizabeth made a commitment to advocate against this obsessive online gaming disorder.   She created a website, On-Line Gamers Anonymous, which is a fellowship of people sharing their experiences, strengths and hope to help each other recover and heal from the problems caused by compulsive game playing. The website's core is a message board that allows gamers to speak out, identify and nurse each other through their on-line gaming addiction problems.

"Designers create the games to be as addictive as possible," said Wooley.   "It is how they make their money.   Charging a user on a per hour basis, creating a game that never ends and making the games so close to reality pulls a person in so that they never let go."

Wooley said these games have become so completely immersed into reality that Christmas, Thanksgiving, even Easter and score of other holidays can be celebrated right online within the gamer's virtual reality world.

Shawn Wooley committed suicide due to his depression and online gaming addiction

(Photo copyright of the Associated Press)

DOCTORS TACKLE ADDICTION ISSUES

Sam Schaperow, a licensed marriage and family therapist counselor based in Waterford, CT, said the addiction begins before the user is ever introduced to the video game.  

"People who have addictive personalities are more susceptible to this disorder," said Schaperow.   "Things that are repetitive, such as World of War Craft and other games, allow the person to feed it forever."

According to Webster's Dictionary, an addictive behavior allows a person to become dependent or compulsively obsessed with anything.   Compulsive behaviors are rooted in need to reduce tensions caused by inner feelings a person wants to avoid or control.

"This fantasy world allows endless opportunities to the gamer to keep feeding their addiction," said Schaperow.   "It is not the game that is the problem, it is other problems in their lives that they cannot control.   The game allows the person to escape from reality and take control of the fantasy world."

Treatment for the disorder varies, however most therapists and professionals agree that the root of the problem is to "find the progressive reasoning in the mind and create a solution."

"It involves recognizing unhelpful or destructive patterns of thinking and reacting," said Schaperow, "then modifying or replacing these with more realistic or helpful ones."

Schaperow said the video game addict should first recognize their problem, then they can replace the negative feelings that steer them toward the video games and progressively escape into a more positive reality.   Schaperow gave the example of a person who has a negative outlook on their job and feels that they cannot ever perform at a high level.   If that person instead, thinks it is possible, their confidence will be restored to a higher level, allowing that person to see life different, and ultimately not need to escape to a reality world.

Addiction therapist, Hilarie Cash, PhD., working a practice in Redmond, Wash., said she turns to family intervention, and confronts the problem head on instead of wandering around it.

"Family intervention has worked for several patients I have seen," said Cash.   "I want to work with the family to confront the real problems the person is having.   That is the key to this addiction."

Dr. Jonathan Goldberg, PhD., a Boston psychologist, said the addiction could act as a stage to introduce a number of other issues the patient could be experiencing.  

"The person in the addiction is at a stage where they don't know where they are," said Goldberg.   "The phenomena can strike at any age as well, tween through the adult years."

Dr. Jerald Block is an Oregon psychiatrist, and co-developer of Smartguard Software, a computer program designed to protect from the risks that come with peer-to-peer program usage.   Besides being easy to implement, and the ability to continuously build on itself, the short five-minute installation will guard against any unsupervised P2P applications, such as online gaming.  

"We have had much success with this program," said Block, "and hope to continuously develop the software to compete with a growing online communication environment."

When referring to online gaming addiction, as an "addiction", Block said the complications with that exist in assigning it as an "addiction."

"I like to refer to it as compulsive computer use disorder," said Block.   "It's really the computer that the user is obsessed with, and we work to alleviate that usage, and concentrate on other positive replacements."

Dr. Kimberly Young, executive director of the Center for Internet Addiction Recovery, said admitting the addiction is the first step.

"The game becomes a safe means to cope with life's problems," said Young.   "It is a legal and inexpensive way to soothe troubling feelings and can quickly become a convenient way to instantly forget whatever stresses and pains they are experiencing."

Like a drug addict or alcoholic who uses substances to escape problems, gaming addicts use the game to avoid stressful situations and unpleasant feelings.  

"They escape into the gratification of the game and the feelings they associate with playing it," said Young.   "Gamers who feel awkward, isolated, and insecure in real life can transform themselves into someone who feels socially confident, connected, and self-assured with others through the game."

Through the social interaction the game provides, a gamer can progress deeper into the game, making friends, or could be their friends were the ones who first introduced the gamer to the game and subsequently these social relationships with other players become highly significant.

"They feel more accomplished, more accepted, and better about themselves," said Young.   "And through their characters, gamers live out a fictional life that is more satisfying and interesting than their own."

At some point however, therapy may not be the ultimate answer.   For more severe cases, inpatient treatment or medication may be necessary.

"Medication can help depress anxiety," said Young.   "Often medicine can be used as an adjunct to replace anxiety."