Evidence on Problematic Online Gaming and Social Anxiety over the Past Ten Years: a Systematic Literature Review

Purpose of Review The present study aimed to review the literature concerning the relationship between problematic online gaming (POG) and social anxiety, taking into account the variables implicated in this relationship. This review included studies published between 2010 and 2020 that were indexed in major databases with the following keywords: Internet gaming, disorder, addiction, problematic, social phobia, and social anxiety. Recent Findings In recent years, scientific interest in POG has grown dramatically. Within this prolific research field, difficulties associated with social anxiety have been increasingly explored in relation to POG. Indeed, evidence showed that individuals who experience social anxiety are more exposed to the risk of developing an excessive or addictive gaming behavior. Summary A total of 30 studies satisfied the initial inclusion criteria and were included in the present literature review. Several reviewed studies found a strong association between social anxiety and online gaming disorder. Furthermore, the relationships among social anxiety, POG, age, and psychosocial and comorbid factors were largely explored. Overall, the present review showed that socially anxious individuals might perceive online video games as safer social environments than face-to-face interactions, predisposing individuals to the POG. However, in a mutually reinforcing relationship, individuals with higher POG seem to show higher social anxiety. Therefore, despite online gaming might represent an activity able to alleviate psychopathological symptoms and/or negative emotional states, people might use online gaming to counterbalance distress or negative situations in everyday life, carrying out a maladaptive coping strategy.

Voice adaptation by color-encoded frame matching as a multi-objective optimization problem for future games

Voice adaptation is an interactive speech processing technique that allows the speaker to transmit with a chosen target voice. We propose a novel method that is intended for dynamic scenarios, such as online video games, where the source speaker’s and target speaker’s data are nonaligned. This would yield massive improvements to immersion and experience by fully becoming a character, and address privacy concerns to protect against harassment by disguising the voice. With unaligned data, traditional methods, e.g., probabilistic models become inaccurate, while recent methods such as deep neural networks (DNN) require too substantial preparation work. Common methods require multiple subjects to be trained in parallel, which constraints practicality in productive environments. Our proposal trains a subject nonparallel into a voice profile used against any unknown source speaker. Prosodic data such as pitch, power and temporal structure are encoded into RGBA-colored frames used in a multi-objective optimization problem to adjust interrelated features based on color likeness. Finally, frames are smoothed and adjusted before output. The method was evaluated using Mean Opinion Score, ABX, MUSHRA, Single Ease Questions and performance benchmarks using two voice profiles of varying sizes and lastly discussion regarding game implementation. Results show improved adaptation quality, especially in a larger voice profile, and audience is positive about using such technology in future games.

The Effect of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Video Game Consumption in Turkey

Different precautions such as quarantine, social distance, and hygiene applications have been taken around the world to prevent the spreading of the virus during the COVID-19 pandemic. While these precautions brought many sectors to a halt, digital-based platforms have been used more actively. The pandemic changed daily work, leisure, education, and the time spent with families and how people distribute their time on these items. The interest toward digital games increased as the result of COVID-19 quarantine. As people spent more time at home, they tended to play games to socialize. This study aims to evaluate the changes and tendencies in the consumption of video games during the pandemic period in Turkey. Accordingly, the consumption of online video games in 2020 was analyzed through comparing with 2019. As a result, it was detected that more time and money was spent during the pandemic period on the digital game sector which was also important before.

The Impact of Online Game Addiction on the Quality of Student Education During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has had a severe impact on the quality of education in Indonesia. This study aims to describe addiction's effect on the quality of student education during the Covid-19 pandemic in Indonesia. This research is a literature study with a qualitative approach. The results show that during the Covid-19 outbreak, game data usage is reported to have increased worldwide, and download volume games have reached highs record in Asia, including Indonesia. This is caused by games used to cope with the psychological stress caused by the outbreak. Traditional games that were once popular have been replaced by new games such as online video games. Stakeholders should be aware of how addiction increases to online games, especially during a pandemic, and can contribute to the risk of disruption to the quality of student learning, especially if the pandemic continues. The government must formulate alternative ways to avoid online game addiction during the Covid-19 pandemic for people, especially teenagers, which can interfere with the quality of their education.

People’s Republic of China Legal Update: The Notice on Further Strictly Regulating and Effectively Preventing Online Video Gaming Addiction in Minors (Published August 30, 2021, Effective September 1, 2021)

The National Press and Publication Administration (NPPA) of the People’s Republic of China published the Notice on Further Strictly Regulating and Effectively Preventing Online Video Gaming Addiction in Minors (the “2021 Notice”) on August 30, 2021. The 2021 Notice becomes effective on September 1, 2021. The 2021 Notice updates (and, where incompatible, supersedes) the older regulatory requirements set out by the NPPA in the Notice on the Prevention of Online Gaming Addiction in Juveniles (the “2019 Notice”) published nearly two years ago on 25 October 2019, which was translated and discussed by Xiao at 24 GAMING LAW REV. 51–53. The two Notices regulate video gaming in China and restrict minors’ (defined as people under the age of 18) access to online video games. This International Gaming Industry Update comparesthe old and new regulatory positions and comments on the implications of this regulatory development in China.

Where Do Online Games Fit into the Health Behaviour Ecology of Emerging Adults: A Scoping Review

Online video games are a common pastime for emerging adults (EAs). EAs are an age group that is of interest in health communication because habits formed during this life stage can cause or prevent disease later in life. Guided by three research questions, this scoping review identifies the current state of research into socio-ecological influences on physical activity and diet behaviours of EAs. The review also examines the role that online video games play within this behavioural ecology. In total, 112 articles were found that focused on behavioural ecological influences for physical activity and diet behaviour among EAs. Seven of these articles focused on the impact of online video games, although only in conjunction with their influence on physical activity, identifying a gap in understanding the influence of online games on diet. Results show that online video games are currently under-researched in terms of impacts on physical activity and diet despite the prevalence of the use of these games within the EA cohort.

Curing toxicity – developing design principles to buffer toxic behaviour in massive multiplayer online games

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to investigate toxic behaviour (TB) that significantly harms individuals’ gameplay experience in multiplayer online video games. Multiplayer online video games allow to simultaneously interact with others in real time. They can be considered as digital communities unifying a group of players within a video game. TB is characterized by spreading a bad mood (e.g. upsetting and insulting) leading to unsatisfying outcomes in team-based multiplayer environments. Design/methodology/approach Using mixed methods, the authors show that handling TB should be addressed more firmly on a level of game design. First, the authors test the explanatory power of the online disinhibition effect (ODE) and its antecedents on TB using a quantitative survey (N = 320) and structural equation modelling. Specifically, the authors show that dissociative anonymity, asynchronicity, solipsistic introjection, dissociative imagination and minimization of authority have a mediated effect through toxic disinhibition as predictors of TB. Second, the authors conduct a focus group workshop (N = 10) with experts from diverse disciplines to derive design principles on a level of game design. Findings The results indicate that transparency and imminent feedback are still underutilized elements in game design that can significantly buffer several forms of TB. By developing a heuristic prototype and exemplary design principles in subsequent categories, the authors address all relevant in-game scenarios. With this study, the authors provide researchers and practitioners helpful insights on how to increase the well-being and safety of gaming communities. Originality/value ODE already showed its explanatory potential in the neighbouring context of cyberbullying. Embedded in theories of negative behaviour on the internet, the authors propose a holistic and theory-driven approach to handle TB on a level of game design. The authors’ insights allow for a better understanding of an innovative entity of the dark side of technology diffusion and adverse side effects linked to it.

A Blur Line Between Hobby and Addiction: Online Video Gaming Among the Youth of Arunachal Pradesh

Online video games have become more popular among the youth and young adults in the past decade. These games are exceedingly addictive. The youths and young adults engage many hours of their day playing these games. This article is an attempt to understand the players’ perceptions and reasons for spending hours playing it. This article also explores the factors responsible for the growth of video games as a trending popular culture. The current study examines the impact of excessive gameplay on a gamers’ life as a whole. This study found out that graphics, gameplay, and story line of a gameplay play a vital role in the popularity of a particular game. It is the extra-realistic gaming experience that online games offer, which makes it so addictive. It is also revealed that players felt socially stigmatized for being a gamer since playing video games is not a socially accepted form of a hobby in Arunachal Pradesh unlike in some parts of the world. Basically, this article focuses on the insights of players about their experience as an insider in this gaming culture.