Scholars’ open debate paper on the World Health Organization ICD-11 Gaming Disorder proposal
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Hussain JBA_ICD 11 Debate ...
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Authors
Aarseth, EspenBean, Anthony M.
Boonen, Huub
Colder Carras, Michelle
Coulson, Mark
Das, Dimitri
Deleuze, Jory
Dunkels, Elza
Edman, Johan
Ferguson, Christopher J.
Haagsma, Maria C.
Helmersson Bergmark, Karin
Hussain, Zaheer
Jansz, Jeroen
Kardefelt-Winther, Daniel
Kutner, Lawrence
Markey, Patrick
Nielsen, Rune Kristian Lundedal
Prause, Nicole
Przybylski, Andrew
Quandt, Thorsten
Schimmenti, Adriano
Starcevic, Vladan
Stutman, Gabrielle
Van Looy, Jan
van Rooij, Antonius J.
Affiliation
University of CopenhagenFramingham State University
Centrum voor Alcohol en andere Drugproblemen
John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Middlesex University
Université Catholique de Louvain
Umeå University
Stockholm University
Stetson University
GGZ Momentum
University of Derby
Erasmus University Rotterdam
Karolinska Institute
Villanova University
Liberos LLC
University of Oxford
University of Münster
Kore University of Enna
University of Sydney
Ghent University
Issue Date
2016-12-30
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Concerns about problematic gaming behaviors deserve our full attention. However, we claim that it is far from clear that these problems can or should be attributed to a new disorder. The empirical basis for a Gaming Disorder proposal, such as in the new ICD-11, suffers from fundamental issues. Our main concerns are the low quality of the research base, the fact that the current operationalization leans too heavily on substance use and gambling criteria, and the lack of consensus on symptomatology and assessment of problematic gaming. The act of formalizing this disorder, even as a proposal, has negative medical, scientific, public-health, societal, and human rights fallout that should be considered. Of particular concern are moral panics around the harm of video gaming. They might result in premature application of diagnosis in the medical community and the treatment of abundant false-positive cases, especially for children and adolescents. Second, research will be locked into a confirmatory approach, rather than an exploration of the boundaries of normal versus pathological. Third, the healthy majority of gamers will be affected negatively. We expect that the premature inclusion of Gaming Disorder as a diagnosis in ICD-11 will cause significant stigma to the millions of children who play video games as a part of a normal, healthy life. At this point, suggesting formal diagnoses and categories is premature: the ICD-11 proposal for Gaming Disorder should be removed to avoid a waste of public health resources as well as to avoid causing harm to healthy video gamers around the world.Citation
Aarselth, A. et al (2016) 'Scholars’ open debate paper on the World Health Organization ICD-11 Gaming Disorder proposal', Journal of Behavioral Addictions, DOI: 10.1556/2006.5.2016.088Publisher
Akadémiai KiadóJournal
Journal of Behavioral AddictionsDOI
10.1556/2006.5.2016.088Additional Links
http://www.akademiai.com/doi/abs/10.1556/2006.5.2016.088Type
ArticleLanguage
enISSN
20625871EISSN
20635303ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1556/2006.5.2016.088
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