Disordered gaming: The role of a gamer’s distress profile.

Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science / Revue canadienne des sciences du comportement, Vol 56(2), Apr 2024, 122-132; doi:10.1037/cbs0000335Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) embodies a persistent and recurrent engagement with video games, to the exclusion of other activities, that cannot be controlled, and with significant impairments in everyday functioning. Previous research suggests that IGD is experienced differently depending on the gamer’s profile, while distress symptoms such as depression, anxiety, and stress have been independently associated to the development of IGD. Interestingly, no study to date has aimed to profile gamers based on these three psychopathologies. The present study aimed to (a) profile gamers concerning their depression, anxiety, and stress, and (b) examine the differences in IGD levels between the different profiles of distress. A sample consisting of 968 gamers (18–64 years, Mage = 29.54) was assessed with the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS-21) and the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale–Short-Form (IGDS9-SF). Latent class analysis (LCA) identified three distinct distress profiles. These encompassed “High-Distress Comorbidity” (HDC; 25.9%), “Medium-Distress Comorbidity” (MDC; 48.7%) and “Low-Distress Comorbidity” (LDC; 25.4%) gamers. As hypothesised, higher distress comorbidity profiles are linked with higher IGD levels. Findings suggest that there are different distress profiles varying by symptom severity, with more dist...
Source: Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Source Type: research