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Gambling, Gaming & Technology Use Community of Interest

The Gambling, Gaming & Technology Use Community of Interest brings together addiction and mental health service providers, researchers and subject matter experts in the fields of gambling, technology/Internet use and video gaming to collaborate and share knowledge on emerging trends and clinical best practices.

Tagged With "internet"

Discussion Topic

Teens in Urban Regions Are More Likely To Experience Problem Video Gaming

Registered Member ·
Our colleagues at EENet have just released a research snapshot on their website based on research of Shi and colleagues published in the International Journal of Mental health and Addiction . The study found higher levels of problem video gaming in teens living in urban areas than in teens living in rural areas. Interestingly, they also found that teens in urban regions with a gambling problem were more likely to have a problem with video gaming when compared to teens who did not gamble.
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Re: Teens in Urban Regions Are More Likely To Experience Problem Video Gaming

Registered Member ·
Thanks for sharing your thoughts, @Registered Member. This is based on the results of one article, so it may be possible that other studies looking at the differences in problem video gaming between teens in urban and rurals regions could yield different results depending on the region, access to technology and offline activities available, among many factors. And thanks @Registered Member, I agree that it would be vital to educate students (and parents/guardians) about gambling, video...
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Re: Teens in Urban Regions Are More Likely To Experience Problem Video Gaming

Registered Member ·
Great question @Registered Member. I wonder as gaming and smart phone use get more recognition, there will be more references in pop culture, which will in turn bring more awareness to the issues. Just this month in GQ magazine, there was an article on cutting back on smart phone use that included several practical strategies including turning your phone to grey scale. Apparently seeing apps/pictures/games etc in grey scale is less appealing and people were found to reduce their phone screen...
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Re: Teens in Urban Regions Are More Likely To Experience Problem Video Gaming

Registered Member ·
I am located in a rural county of Ontario with no access to transportation and a high rate of low income families who struggle to have access to sport available in our community, having said that you would think that problematic video game use would be more of an issue for the youth in our rural areas.
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Re: Teens in Urban Regions Are More Likely To Experience Problem Video Gaming

Registered Member ·
I like your idea Tiffany of adding safer gaming practices into curriculum with safer gambling information. I also think that there is a need for a paired curriculum for parents/guardians on both of these topics, especially as technology use is so ubiquitious. I wonder how influential overall wellness and mental health education would be at addressing some of those underlying issues and how students would respond if the curriculum not only taught safer gambling and gaming practices, but...
Discussion Topic

Assessing gaming disorder: Expert opinions

Registered Member ·
Gaming disorder can be difficult to assess, as there are concerns about over pathologizing normal or potentially healthy behaviours. A new study surveyed 29 international experts until consensus was reached about useful criteria for assessing gaming disorder. This study helps clinicians with creating their own assessments to ensure they're looking at the most relevant features in their assessment to target as well as ensure they're not problematizing less relevant features. An interesting...
Discussion Topic

Book recommendation: 'The Shallows: What the internet is doing to our brains' by Nicholas Carr

Registered Member ·
For those of you interested in the ways technology affects our brain and behaviour, I highly recommend ' The Shallows: What the internet is doing to our brains' by Nicholas Carr . A new 2020 edition of this book has been published and it summarizes a lot of the key literature and thinking on how the internet has changed our attention and memory processing. I've been thinking and writing a lot about deep, focused work - which can feel like a lost art some days when we feel like we're being...
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Re: 'Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now'

Registered Member ·
Interesting post! I will check out this book. Although I know I'm not personally ready to delete all my social media, I have consciously reduced engagement with platforms such as Facebook over time and also have felt the benefits. I have my doubts that we will see a social media-free future, especially as we navigate through a new reality where a continued or new pandemic(s) may threaten ability to gather and travel for long stretches of time. Social media provides easy ways of staying...
Discussion Topic

'Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now'

Registered Member ·
The Netflix documentary The Social Dilemma argues that the social media platforms we use to stay connected are making us miserable, disconnected, and potentially having a much wider impact on the socio-political landscape. The documentary received both praise for its engaging content but also received its fair share of criticism for perhaps being, at times, unbalanced in its views (and for not including individuals who have been campaigning for humane and ethical technology long before the...
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Re: 'Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now'

Registered Member ·
@Registered Member - the arguments aren't necessarily what you might expect (like improved wellbeing, sleep, etc.) the book focusses more on the impact of those algorithms on our ability to have empathy with others or be critical of news sources (argument #3 - 'social media is making you into an a**; #4 - 'social media is undermining the truth; #9 'social media is making politics impossible'). The author is a computer scientist and futurist so I think he's really arguing about how these...
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Re: 'Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now'

Registered Member ·
I'm wondering what some of the arguments in the book are? I'm in a weird boat, where, I never got popular social media like FaceBook growing up (despite the peer pressure to do so) but grew up with everyone around me having it. I always felt that, even a decade ago, it was odd to put up your communications with everyone to see it vs. individualized messaging or communities (like specialized forums). I felt that amongst different friend groups, family members or work colleagues - they knew me...
Discussion Topic

Internet safety tips for tweens, teens, parents and caregivers

Registered Member ·
I'm always on the lookout for accessible resources that are useful for young people and their families/caregivers and professionals who work with families. Below are some links to a great blog series from the creators of Bark, an app for families and schools that can monitor and alert adults about risky or concerning activity on a young person's smartphone. Whilst the Bark app appears to currently only be available in the U.S, their team runs an interesting blog series with videos and linked...
Discussion Topic

In the news: (CBC) Ford government could lose $2.8B over 5 years in online gambling bet, confidential report warns

Registered Member ·
A CBC article published today outlines how the Ontario government could lose up to $550 million in annual revenue with the arrival of the online gambling market in Ontario ($2.8 billion over the next five years). The projections, outlined in a private and confidential report to one of Canada's largest gaming companies, suggests that the province is set to lose money due to individuals spending more money on online gambling and moving away from land-based casino gambling (the taxation rate is...
Discussion Topic

Autism, Problematic Internet Use and Gaming Disorder: A Systematic Review

Registered Member ·
Link to article: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40489-021-00243-0 The present study investigated the association between autism and problematic internet use (PIU) and gaming disorder (GD). A systematic literature search was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. A total of 2286 publications were screened, and 21 were deemed eligible for inclusion in the review. The majority of the studies found positive associations between PIU and subclinical autistic-like traits with...
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Re: Autism, Problematic Internet Use and Gaming Disorder: A Systematic Review

Registered Member ·
So true Peter. I am finding this also with the population I am working with. Great article that was posted of the research review.
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Re: Autism, Problematic Internet Use and Gaming Disorder: A Systematic Review

Registered Member ·
I recall when I worked in the problem gambling and technology use service at CAMH, many of the problem gaming clients would present with signs of ASD. So this was the research playing out in real life.
Discussion Topic

State of the Research: Gaming Disorder (YouTube)

Registered Member ·
This 12-minute video (Youtube) is a great, accessible summary of the research into Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD). The presenter discusses the current debate surrounding the diagnosis criteria of IGD, concerns from some researchers and clinicians, along with the corresponding research papers. This is a visual, interactive way of accessing this information that can often feel quite technical and dry. We cover similar topics and discussions in our Introduction to Problem Technology Use...
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