Recreational awareness prevents digital game addiction associated with social exclusion in adolescents

Abstract

ABSTRACT Digital game addiction has become an important topic in recent years, and research into this area is constantly expanding because of the vast popularity of video games. These studies examine the physical, psychological, and social origins of digital game addiction to better understand the issues that might result from it. The current study seeks to shed light on the preventative impact of recreational awareness on digital game addiction linked to social exclusion within this context. Data were gathered through an online survey method, and a total of 346 Turkish adolescents (ages 15–18) were included in the sample. The findings revealed that recreational awareness had a negative moderating effect on the relationship between social exclusion and digital game addiction. Moreover, it was determined that men had higher levels of digital game addiction compared to women and women had higher levels of social exclusion compared to men. The results obtained from the research have been discussed in the relevant section, and recommendations have been formulated considering the outcomes.