An Investigation of Online Gaming Addiction Level Among University Students in Terms of Emotional Schemas, Agentic Personality, and Various Variables

Abstract

The aim of this study is to examine online game addiction level among university students in terms of emotional schemas, agentic personality, and various variables (i.e. gender, type of game played, and accommodation). The sample group consists of 380 university students studying in İzmir province and playing online games during the school year of 2017 and 2018. The data have been collected through multiple tools that are Online Game Addiction Scale for University Students, Multi-measure Agentic Personality Scale, Leahy Emotional Schema Scale, and Personal Information Questionnaire. The data were analyzed by correlation analysis, t-test, one-way analysis of variance, and regression analysis in accordance with the hypothesis of the study. The result of regression analysis indicated that emotional schemas of uncontrollability, demand for rationality, rumination, dissimilarity, denial of emotions, validation, seeing emotions as dangerous, acceptance of feelings, consensus, and guilt predicted addiction significantly, whereas, emotional schemas of weakness against emotions and duration did not predict such an outcome. Additionally, as a result of the t-test, it was found that online gaming addiction levels differed significantly according to gender and that males had higher levels of online game addiction than females. Lastly, one-way analysis of variance resulted in finding the level of online gaming addiction significantly differed based on the type of game played, but it did not differ significantly based on where students lived.

Distance Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Impact of Online Gaming Addiction on University Students’ Performance

“…Female students spend less time playing video games. The findings of this study are consistent with that of [17,25,26,27,28,29].…”

The Relationship Between Anxiety Symptoms, Anxiety Sensitivity, and Emotional Schemas in Patients Admitted to Psychiatry Outpatient Clinic

“…Although denial of emotions was higher in patients with high anxiety symptoms, as expected, our study showed that denial of emotions had a reducing effect on the occurrence of anxiety symptoms. In a study examining the relationship between Internet addiction and emotional schemas in Turkey, the Denial of Emotions schema was found to have a negative and significant relationship with Internet addiction [27]. It was stated that online gaming addiction had a hypnotic effect and although one did not realize the emotions and the effect it had, a negative relationship might occur through glorifying the feeling of success and competition [27].…”

“…In a study examining the relationship between Internet addiction and emotional schemas in Turkey, the Denial of Emotions schema was found to have a negative and significant relationship with Internet addiction [27]. It was stated that online gaming addiction had a hypnotic effect and although one did not realize the emotions and the effect it had, a negative relationship might occur through glorifying the feeling of success and competition [27]. Another study conducted in our country, that examined emotional schemas and defense mechanisms, showed that there was a significant inverse relationship between denial of emotions and immature and neurotic defenses [28].…”

The More Digital You Are, The More Your Child is Addicted to Digital Games: A Correlational Study

“…The use of digital technologies creates convenience and differences in our lives, but their unconscious use can also create some negative effects (Aydemir, 2020). Technology such as the internet, computers, and mobile phones have many negative physiological or psychological effects, especially on individuals (Bekir, 2019). It is common for users to experience addictions (such as gaming, internet use, phone use), harmful content, cyberbullying, cyberfraud, and cybe harassment in this area (Hasebrink, Livingstone, Haddon & Olafsson, 2009; Van den Heuvel, Van den Eijnden, Van Rooij and Van de Mheen, 2012;Ybarra, 2004).…”