Abstract
The purpose of this study is to determine heart rate variability (HRV) parameters that can quantitatively characterize game addiction by using electrocardiograms (ECGs). 23 subjects were classified into two groups prior to the experiment, 11 game-addicted subjects, and 12 non-addicted subjects, using questionnaires (CIUS and IAT). Various HRV parameters were tested to identify the addicted subject. The subjects played the League of Legends game for 30–40 min. The experimenter measured ECG during the game at various window sizes and specific events. Moreover, correlation and factor analyses were used to find the most effective parameters. A logistic regression equation was formed to calculate the accuracy in diagnosing addicted and non-addicted subjects. The most accurate set of parameters was found to be pNNI20, RMSSD, and LF in the 30 s after the “being killed” event. The logistic regression analysis provided an accuracy of 69.3% to 70.3%. AUC values in this study ranged from 0.654 to 0.677. This study can be noted as an exploratory step in the quantification of game addiction based on the stress response that could be used as an objective diagnostic method in the future.
Highlights
The game industry is growing, with a market size of more than US $123.4 billion worldwide
The t-Test Results between Groups after Specific Event There was no significant difference of heart rate variability (HRV) parameters between groups for window sizes of 30 s, 60 s, 90 s, and 120 s after “killing events” (p > 0.1)
Correlation Analysis and Factor Analysis with HRV Parameters A correlation analysis was performed to examine the redundancy of the parameters in differentiating between the two groups
Summary
The game industry is growing, with a market size of more than US $123.4 billion worldwide. Ryu and Lee [3] stated that such booming of the game industry has a positive influence on society, including stress management, the realization of the ideal self, and physical ability improvement. Internet game players are not protected from becoming addicted to gaming. This addiction problem could adversely affect personal life as well as family and society, and has become a serious public health issue. Byun and Lee [6] found that Internet addiction is closely related to the increased frequency and duration of Internet use, and leads to anxiety, fear, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, with adolescents being vulnerable target users. Koepp et al [7] observed that dopamine is secreted from the brains of addicted adolescents with a similar pattern to that of drug addiction
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