Gaming Disorder Among Female Adolescents: A Hidden Problem?

Abstract

The global popularity of online gaming continues to grow, as the gaming industry diversifies its products and leverages new technologies to expand its market [1,2]. Although the mainstream media tend to focus on best-selling competitive online shooter games, such as Fortnite and Call of Duty, gaming has become quite diverse and wide ranging. Gaming innovations have occurred in genres (e.g., role-playing, simulation, and puzzles), hardware and accessibility (e.g., smartphones, tablets, and virtual reality), social features (e.g., cooperation and teamwork), and playability (e.g., interactive narrative and content creation). The industry has also expanded its social functionality by linking and integrating games with social media and streaming platforms (e.g., Twitch and Mixer) [3]. Such developments have likely contributed to changing demographic profiles of gamers, which include an increasing female adolescent population involved in gaming activities, particularly those that intersect with social media and related online activities......