Gaming Disorder and Psychotic Disorders: A Scoping Review

Abstract

Background: There is a growing interest in understanding the impact of video games in the clinical field, given that their excessive use could be associated with health issues. Particularly, gaming disorder (GD) is considered as an addictive behavioral disorder. Clinicians widely recognize the comorbidity of gaming and psychotic disorders (PDs). Furthermore, association between addictive (i.e., substance use disorders) and PDs are well recognized by clinicians. It seems of high interest to explore GD among people with PDs. To this day, little is known about the consequences of GD in vulnerable populations. Objectives: The aim of this scoping review was to summarize the available research on the comorbidity between GD and PD and to identify the knowledge gaps in this field. Methods: We used Levac’s six-stage methodology for scoping review. Two-hundred and forty-two articles from seven databases were identified. Eight articles respected our inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results: No available study has assessed the prevalence or incidence of GD among patients with PDs. The cases reported highlight the possibility that excessive video gameplay or abrupt gaming disruption could trigger psychosis in some patients. Conclusion: The results highlight a significant lack of knowledge concerning PDs associated with GD as only a few reported cases and one empirical study exposed the potential association between those conditions.