Research into Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) literature largely uses cross-sectional designs and seldom examines gaming context-related factors. Therefore, the present study combined a cross-sectional and longitudinal design to examine depression and the gamer-avatar relationship (GAR) as risk factors in the development of IGD among emerging adults. IGD behaviors of 125 gamers (64 online gamers, Mage = 23.3 years, SD= 3.4; 61 offline gamers, Mage = 23.0 years, SD= 3.4) were assessed using the nine-item Internet Gaming Disorder Scale Short Form (IGDS-SF9; Pontes & Griffiths, 2015). The Self-Presence Scale (Ratan & Dawson, 2015) and the Beck Depression Inventory (Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996) were also used to assess gamers' levels of GAR and depressive symptoms respectively. Regression and moderation analyses revealed that depression and the GAR act as individual risk factors in the development of IGD over time. Furthermore, the GAR exacerbates the IGD risk effect of depression.Keywords: Internet Gaming Disorder; Video gaming; Gamer-avatar relationship; Online addiction; Depression 3 IntroductionThe expansion of online gaming has led to excessive and potentially problematic gaming among a small minority of individuals (Pontes & Griffiths, 2014). The first commercial video games made their debut in the US in the 1970s, and by the early 1980s reports of video gaming addiction began to appear in academic literature (Kowert & Quandt, 2015). In the 2000s there was a substantial growth in video game playing, video game addiction, and associated research (Griffiths, 2015). As the medium has developed, it has enabled an online environment where gamers can gather virtually and create global online communities (Griffiths, 2015). Consequently, there has been a significant growth over the last decade of research examining both online video gaming and video game addiction (Griffiths, van Rooij et al., 2016; Petry et al., 2014; Petry et al., 2014).Various terms have been employed to define excessive online video gameplay such as 'problem video game playing', 'video game addiction', 'internet gaming addiction', 'pathological video game use', 'problem video game play', 'online gaming addiction', 'video game dependency', 'pathological gaming', and 'problematic online gaming ' (Pontes & Griffiths, 2014). The wide variety of names, definitions, and diagnostic instruments applied to problematic video gaming has resulted in inconsistencies among researchers considering the prevalence of the behavior (King, Haagsma, Delfabbro, Gradisar, & Griffiths, 2013; Kuss & Griffiths, 2012a; Petry et al., 2014). In May 2013, the American Psychiatric Association (APA, 2013) introduced the classification of Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD; i.e., the problematic use of online video games) as a condition worthy of further study in the latest (fifth) edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).Literature reviews have identified a diagnostic overlap between studies that had previously investigated problem...

Purpose of Review The playing of videogames has become an everyday occurrence among many adolescents and emerging adults. However, gaming can be problematic and potentially addictive and problematic gamers can experience co-occurring behavioral or substance use-related problems. The aims of the present review were to (i) determine the co-occurrence of potentially addictive behaviors with problematic and disordered gaming, and (ii) elucidate the potential risk factors in the development and maintenance of co-occurrence within disordered gaming. Recent Findings The main findings demonstrated that there are few empirical studies (N = 20) examining (i) co-occurrence of gaming disorder with other addictive behaviors; (ii) longitudinal risk of disordered gaming with co-occurring addictive behaviors; and (iii) mechanisms of co-occurrence in disordered gaming with co-occurring potentially addictive behaviors. Results suggest that disordered gaming can co-occur with a variety of other addictive behaviors (e.g., alcohol use disorder or addictive use of social media), and that research into the co-occurrence of addictive behaviors and substance use is increasing. Summary Based on this systematic review, findings suggest that gamers engage in a number of potentially addictive behaviors and substance use which can have detrimental effects on health and wellbeing. While a majority of the reviewed studies consider prevalence rates from a range of geographical locations, there are fewer papers which investigate individual and environmental risk factors.

Internet Addiction (IA) constitutes an excessive internet use behavior with significant impact on the user's wellbeing. Online flow describes the users' level of being absorbed by their online activity. The present study investigated age-related, gender, and flow effects on IA in adolescence. The sample comprised 648 adolescents who were assessed twice at age 16 and 18 years. IA was assessed using the Internet Addiction Test and online flow was assessed using the Online Flow Questionnaire. A three-level hierarchical model estimated age-related, gender, and online flow effects on IA symptoms and controlled for clustered random effects.IA symptoms decreased over time (for both genders) with a slower rate in males. Online flow was associated with IA symptoms and this remained consistent over time. Findings expand upon the available literature suggesting that IA symptoms could function as a developmentrelated manifestation at the age of 16 years, while IA-related gender differences gradually increase between 16 and 18 years. Finally, the association between online flow and IA symptoms remained stable independent of age-related effects. The study highlights individual differences and provides directions for more targeted prevention and intervention initiatives for IA.

Understanding risk and protective factors associated with Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) has been highlighted as a research priority by the American Psychiatric Association, (2013). The present study focused on the potential IGD risk effect of anxiety and the buffering role of family cohesion on this association. A sample of emerging adults all of whom were massively multiplayer online (MMO) gamers (18-29 years) residing in Australia were assessed longitudinally (face-to-face: N = 61, M age = 23.02 years, SD = 3.43) and crosssectionally (online: N = 64, M age = 23.34 years, SD = 3

Understanding both the risk and protective factors associated with Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) has been viewed by many in the gaming studies field as an area of research priority. The present study focused on the potential risk and protective effects of user-avatar (game figure) relationship and physical activity (PA) respectively. To address these aims, a cross-sectional and a longitudinal mixed-methods design were combined (comprising both psychological and physiological assessments). A sample of 121 emerging adult gamers (18-29 years) residing in Australia, who played massively multiplayer online games, were assessed in relation to their IGD behaviors using the nine-item Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short Form. Additionally, the Proto-Self-Presence scale was used to evaluate the extent to which gamers identified with the body of their avatar.Finally, a PA monitor (Fit-Bit Flex) measured levels of energy consumed during real world daily activities (active minutes). A number of linear regressions and moderation analyses were conducted. Findings confirmed that Proto-SelfPresence functioned as an IGD risk factor and that PA acted protectively, weakening the association between Proto-Self-Presence and IGD behaviors.Implications of these findings are discussed in relation to IGD treatment and gaming development aspects. Keywords:Internet Gaming Disorder; Proto-Self-Presence; Physical Activity; Emerging Adulthood; Massively Multiplayer Online games. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 Internet Gaming Disorder 3 IntroductionInternet use has grown exponentially, constituting an inherent part of contemporary life (Anderson, Steen & Stavropoulos, 2016). In that context, the userinternet interplay (within the broader human computer interaction filed) has attracted the attention of researchers from a diverse range of scientific disciplines including psychology, information technology, computer science, and sociology (Lazar, Feng, & Hochheiser, 2017). One particularly popular and continuously expanding online application/activity that has gravitated research focus is Internet gaming (Andreassen et al., 2016). More specifically, the potentially positive (e.g., mental health improvements, cultural openness, a sense of meaning and accomplishment, collaboration and emotive stimulation; Smahel, Blinka, & Brown, 2012; Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010; Armitage, Claypool, & Branch, 2006; Billieux et al., 2015; Hsu, Wen, & Wu, 2009;Snodgrass, Lacy, Dengah, & Fagan, 2011) and negative effects (e.g., negative impact on identity formation, physical health and interpersonal relationships; Billieux et al., 2015; Hyun et al., 2015; Kuss, 2013; Hsu et al, 2009;Freeman, 2008) of Internet gaming, depending on the intensity of gaming involvement, have been demonstrated (Anderson et al., 2016). Additionally, the significance of the g...