Ex-NFL lineman Quinn Pitcock says he was addicted to video games

I'm talking to people I don't know, and liking statuses, and playing Wild West Town on FB. Not sure it counts as "communicating."

And those video games (though I haven't read the story) are much more communicative. You play with a wireless connection to other players, and you talk to them in real time through a headset.

 

The 'communicating' thing is a red herring.

What IJAG describes for herself is the same as the Modern Warfare addiction.


So you sleep two hours a day?

What about weekends/offdays?

 

What I truly hate are the handheld devices. I swear my kids catch ADD from those things -- they come up from 45 minutes looking at that small screen and they cannot control their emotions. That just doesn't happen with them at any other time.

 

I think it's easy -- but uninformed -- to laugh this off or call bulls__t. There's actually quite a bit of neuroscience that supports this -- by which I mean, the electrochemical and biological mechanisms by which humans learn and form habits -- and I don't think it's at all a stretch to wonder if the same things, brain-wise, that make video games compelling in the first place can make them habitual and then addictive.

IJag, I strongly encourage you to take a look at a piece I wrote about ballpark food and neuroscience:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=hruby/091014&sportCat=mlb

... and ask yourself if anything in there seems familiar or related, particularly if you substitute the ballpark food stuff with your plugged-in obsession. The stuff David Kessler talks about ultimately isn't about food. It's about motivation and why we do the things we do.

 

Same deal, minus walking the dog and making a few phone calls. I will grab a nap if I literally can't keep my eyes open.

My dog has actually CURTAILED my life. I don't want to put him in his crate on my days off, because he's in there when I'm working, so I don't go volunteer as much any more. The people I see at work are literally the only people I physically see on most days.

 

For me, the computer has taken the time the TV used to take. When I am outside working or doing something, which is every day, I am not thinking about running inside to check posts of FB status. If I am in line at the store, you bet I am whipping out the droid.

 

Dick's right, it's especially a serious problem in Korea. Not sure why some are surprised about this...you can become addicted to almost any activity.

 

Very interesting piece, Patrick. Yes, and no. Reading your piece, I totally understood from having been around ballparks and food, etc. But I'm not sure it transfers quite as easily as you think it does.

 

Oh, and all "stalking" jokes aside, I have a VERY addictive personality. I obsess, and I fixate, and I overindulge. On cute boys. On shopping. On surfing the net. On watching West Wing episodes. Whatever I am doing at that point is the greatest thing ever and I must do more and more and more.

People ask me how I started smoking at the age of 32. It's easy. I had a friend at my new job four years ago who smoked. The only time I really got to see him was if I went out with him on his smoke breaks. I bummed one. No biggie. Then I went to a bar and drank a lot and would bum 1-2. Then one night I stopped on the way home from the bar (sober) and bought a pack of cigarettes at the gas station. It gave me a reason to see my friend, and it made me feel like I fit in.

 

Holy shit, yes on this post. I can't get my nephews to emerge once they dive into a handheld video game unit or an iPhone.

 

The West Wing addition I understand, but....

Seriously, I don't take it quite as far, but I'm sure a big part of that is having a wife and daughter. But what you describe sounds exactly why I never get more than 5 hours sleep.

 

Oh, I'm sure it's not a 1-1 translation. But maybe there's something there with the cue/anticipation/reward/repeat cycle. Sounds like you have habitual behavior paired with habitual surroundings. Does that make sense?

Anyway, I'm hardly an expert. I wish you well. Feeling a need to be plugged in is only really a problem if it's interfering with your health or well-being.