An online activity that may lead to problematic internet use is online gaming. If you look up online gaming on Wikipedia.com, it says that online games are “games that are played over some form of computer network. Online games can range from simple text based games to games incorporating complex graphics and virtual worlds populated by many players simultaneously. Many online games have associated online communities, making online games a form of social activity beyond single player games.”
It is this last feature of online gaming that I believe makes the activity so prone to causing problematic internet use. Gaming communities cause gamers to develop social bonds and networks online, making the person more likely to return more often. Many online games are not a psychological space where one is anonymous; often, a gamer belongs to a guild or a clan with a set group of others who play together frequently.
This aspect of online gaming can feed off of Davis’s (2002) four dimensions to predict PIU. First, impulse control can be diminished because you are constantly being influenced and persuaded by others to go on and play, especially if you are part of a group. Second, gaming communities can help one get over loneliness and depression by giving them a group of people who share common interests. Third, playing with the same group of people each time can bring the gamer a level of social comfort that makes him prefer the online world to the real world. And finally, what better way to procrastinate than to go online and play games with a bunch of friends from all over the world?!
Caplan’s model does apply to online gaming. The first step is that individuals with psychosocial problems (loneliness and depression) hold negative perceptions about their social competence. Because of these feelings, gamers may prefer online communication and interaction because it is less threatening. This preference for online interaction over FtF interactions can lead to excessive & compulsive online interaction. People who feel lonely or depressed may turn to gaming as a distraction and a way to feel cared about. If they play and feel happy or rewarded for their work in these games, they are very likely to want to return to the gaming space.
There aren’t really any unique affordances in online gaming that can’t be found in other online spaces. However, it is unique in that your character in the gaming world can be whoever you want it to be; if you have a chance to be a whole different person online with less social risk of being rejected or facing a leviathan for being different. This can be very attractive to people with psychosocial problems or even just issues of self-consciousness or low self-esteem.
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1 comment:
Hey Emily,
Great post and analysis (I particularly enjoyed your post title ^^). As the semester progresses, I can see a nice change in the online gaming posts on this blog. Much of the theories that we've studied so far this semester can be easily applied to the inter/intrapersonal complexities of online gaming, and it's quite interesting to see how each of those theories can reflect differently how and why we behave the way we do in various environments. I'm sure we've all thrown around the statement "Oh man, I'm so addicted to that game!" at some point in our lives, but to really think of the consequences of it is very different. Your post answers good questions about why we feel so socially completed by joining these gaming networks. I also like your conclusion that Caplan's model doesn't apply, and your reasoning as to why it doesn't.
Good post, again!
-Kristie
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