Top 3 Signs of Teen Video Game Addiction
The signs of video game addiction among teens can be very obvious. If you think that only kids can get addicted to video games, then you are completely wrong. The gaming world has already created characters that will surely drive teens crazy. Take the “World of Warcraft” as an example. You would notice teenagers getting stuck in the cyber cafes, compulsively playing with their online characters.
Winning fights against another character online does not bring any good. Excessive computer use increases bills while spending too much time in cyber cafes busts pockets. It brings a lot of disadvantages, such as having poor eyesight, poor hygiene, and poor social cooperation with real people. If you think that you are becoming a video game addict, you can take the addiction test for video games and rate your symptoms.
The following are the top 3 signs of teen video game addiction that you can easily observe among teens that are addicted to video games.
- Spending more time than usual in front of the computer
This is usually one of the most common instances that appear in the online addiction tests. This instance is the most classic sign of gaming addiction. Psychologists termed this sign as “grinding” and “farming”, where teen spends all his free time indoors, playing computer games. In most extreme cases, teens would stay 24/7 facing the computer, while only spending very little time for meals and bathroom activities.
- Poor School Grades
Video addicts usually stay the whole day in cyber cafes, striving hard for their characters to level up. Some cut off classes and duel with friends online. They pay more attention to winning fights online, earning items, and leveling up than doing something for their own grades. A typical report card of a video game addict would show the same grades as the example below.
- English Poor
- Mathematics Excellent
- Science Poor
- Social Studies Poor
- Typing Class Excellent
- Physical Education Poor
Teens that are addicted to video games have high grades in some subject areas and low on the others. Since they do not pay attention to all of the subjects, they may only get high grades on subjects that involve computer use.
- Role Playing
Teens that cannot get enough with reality usually turn to Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG) to release their emotions. MMORPGs are the most addictive genre of video games. They depict a real life story of struggle and winning, making friends and fighting with foes, selling and earning money, as well as killing for wealth. These can be real life scenarios wherein teens can feel a sense of belongingness as they play online. When they win, they become heroes of their own online land. Indeed, they can be very wealthy with a cave of gold coins. They can kill all their foes online; unleash their heavy feelings from the real world.
Psychologists also call this as replacement method. The sad thing is that developers are only taking this kind of opportunity to gain profits while the players who are getting hooked to video games are suffering from the side effects of video game addiction.
If you are a parent of teenagers who are showing these signs, you must not ignore them. Pay close attention to their addiction symptoms and refer them to a psychologist for counseling. If you are one of the teenagers who are worried about getting addicted to video games, you can take the self administered addiction test to assess your symptoms. If given an affirmative result, you can consult an addiction counselor on how to minimize your addiction.
