Dysfunctional Use of Online Gaming and Socio-Emotional Adaptation at School

Although online gaming can have many advantages, there are still many young people that tend to be excessively addicted to these online technologies, with a negative impact on their emotional and social functioning. For this reason, the attempt to understand the factors related to online gaming dependence and those related to encouraging positive use is an essential area of health promotion and a priority in preventing serious problems in school context. The aim of the study was to analyze psychological factors (anxiety traits and motivation) related to online gaming and the relation between gaming behaviour and emotional and social functioning at school. 62 secondary school students were recruited for the study. The participants completed the TAD (Anxiety and Depression Test), S.E.D.S. (Social-Emotional Dimension Scale), SDQ (Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire) and The Internet Gaming Disorder Scale (IGD) and their time spent online gaming was recorded. The results showed that psychological factors are strongly related to online gaming time and, both seem to play a significant role in structuring gaming behavior abuse and maladaptive school habits.