DEPENDENCE ON COMPUTER GAMES BY ADOLESCENTS

As computer game playing is a popular activity among adolescents, a qu estionnaire study was undertaken with 387 adolescents (12-16 years of age) to establish their ''dependence'' using a scale adapted from the DSM-III-R criteria for pathological gambling. Analysis indicated that one in five adolescents were currently ''dependent'' upon computer gam es. Boys played significantly more regularly than girls and were more likely to be classified as ''dependent.'' The earlier children began p laying computer games it appeared the more likely they were to be play ing at ''dependent'' levels. These and other results are discussed in relation to research on other gaming dependencies.