AIMS: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of problematic gaming and gambling and the co-occurrence of these behaviours in association with depression and generalised anxiety disorder in a representative general working-age adult population in Latvia. METHODS: Data from a survey of 4,912 respondents aged 15-64 in the general population of Latvia were studied. The Game Addiction Scale, the Problem Gambling Severity Index, and the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scales were used to obtain self-reported data for the target study variables. Descriptive statistics and binary logistic regression models assess the prevalence of the variables and estimate the odds ratios for depression and generalised anxiety disorder. RESULTS: By adjusting for age, sex, and income level, both problematic gaming and gambling significantly increased the odds of depression and anxiety by an average of three times. The prevalence of the co-occurrence of problematic gaming and gambling was 0.8%, and it did not elevate the odds of depression and anxiety compared to having either problematic gaming or gambling alone, which maintains the overall threefold increase of both depression and anxiety (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: In the general adult population, the presence of problematic gaming and gambling indicates a higher likelihood for the individual burden of mental health problems due to the co-existence of depression or anxiety. Thus, the complexity of problematic gaming and gambling has to be taken into account when planning and implementing effective mental health interventions.

• MeSH
• Depressive Disorder * epidemiology   psychology   MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Gambling * epidemiology   psychology   MeSH
• Comorbidity MeSH
• Middle Aged MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Young Adult MeSH
• Behavior, Addictive * epidemiology   MeSH
• Prevalence MeSH
• Anxiety Disorders * epidemiology   psychology   MeSH
• Video Games * statistics & numerical data   psychology   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Adult MeSH
• Middle Aged MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Young Adult MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Latvia MeSH

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: The aim of the present study was to estimate the complex association between Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD), substance use, and other risky behaviours in Czech adolescents whilst providing prevalence estimates of IGD and psychometric information regarding the Czech Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short-Form (IGDS9-SF). METHODS: A representative sample of 3,950 Czech adolescents was recruited through stratified random sampling in the school setting. RESULTS: Disordered gamers showed frequent use of specific substances such as pharmaceuticals, methylenedioxymethamphetamine, and lysergic acid diethylamide. In contrast, non-gamers had higher prevalence of alcohol, cigarettes, sedatives and tranquillisers, and marijuana use. A logistic regression, utilising IGDS9-SF raw scores and average daily gaming time, revealed a U-shaped relationship between gaming and both alcohol and cigarette use. Additionally, conduct problems such as bullying, and risky in-game behaviours were more prevalent among disordered gamers, with the exception of forging parents' signatures. The overall prevalence of IGD was 3.62% (95% CI = [3.1%, 4.3%]), with higher rates in males (5.89%; 95% CI = [4.9%, 7.0%]) than in females (1.45%; 95% CI = [1.0%, 2.1%]). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The Czech IGDS9-SF used in the present study showed adequate psychometric properties. The association between gaming and substance use behaviours may be specific and multifaceted depending on the severity of the gaming-related problems. Furthermore, disordered gamers may become more vulnerable due to a higher incidence of conduct problems, bullying (victimisation), and in-game risky behaviours such as engagement with microtransactions mechanics (e.g., loot box) within video games.

• MeSH
• Adolescent Behavior * MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Internet Addiction Disorder * epidemiology   MeSH
• Substance-Related Disorders * epidemiology   MeSH
• Prevalence MeSH
• Risk-Taking * MeSH
• Video Games statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Czech Republic MeSH

Svět her se s vývojem technologií výrazně proměnil a nabyl nové podoby. V současnosti se ukazuje, že pro děti a dospívající se jednou z nejoblíbenějších volnočasových aktivit stává hraní digitálních her, tj. elektronických her, které lze hrát prostřednictvím počítače, mobilního telefonu, tabletu, herní konzole a dalších. Toto číslo Zaostřeno přináší přehled aktuálního stavu hraní digitálních her u českých adolescentů získaného prostřednictvím reprezentativního celorepublikového výzkumu mezi 3950 respondenty ve věku 11–19 let realizovaného Katedrou psychologie Univerzity Palackého v Olomouci v roce 2018. Použité standardizované škály poskytují první odhady prevalence výskytu poruchy související s hraním digitálních her v populaci adolescentů a odhady populace v riziku závislosti na hraní her v ČR.

As modern technologies develop, the world of digital games has changed remarkably and gaineda new character. It is apparentat present that playing digital games, i.e. electronic games that can be played by means ofaPC, mobile phone, tablet, game console,and other devices, is becoming one of the very favourite leisureactivities for children and adolescents.This articleintroduces asurvey of the current status of digital game playing among Czech adolescents, obtained throughrepresentative research among3950 respondents from all over the country aged between 11 and 19. This research was performed by the Department of Psychology of Palacký University in Olomouc in 2018.The standardised scales applied in this study provide us with the prevalenceof disturbances relating to playing digital games in the population of adolescents and an assessment of the size of the population at risk ofaddiction to game playing in the Czech Republic.

• MeSH
• Child Behavior MeSH
• Adolescent Behavior MeSH
• Child MeSH
• Gambling * MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent * MeSH
• Behavior, Addictive MeSH
• Surveys and Questionnaires MeSH
• Social Problems statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Statistics as Topic MeSH
• Video Games * adverse effects   statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Child MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent * MeSH
• Geographicals
• Czech Republic MeSH

• MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Judgment MeSH
• Mobile Applications statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Surveys and Questionnaires MeSH
• Education, Nursing * methods   MeSH
• Tracheostomy nursing   education   MeSH
• Video Games * statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Virtual Reality MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Publication type
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Geographicals
• Turkey MeSH

• MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Mental Health statistics & numerical data   trends   MeSH
• Gambling MeSH
• Internet statistics & numerical data   trends   MeSH
• Smoking epidemiology   trends   MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Behavior, Addictive * epidemiology   classification   MeSH
• Alcohol Drinking epidemiology   trends   MeSH
• Substance-Related Disorders epidemiology   classification   MeSH
• Observational Studies as Topic methods   MeSH
• Psychotropic Drugs MeSH
• Drug Users statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Video Games statistics & numerical data   trends   MeSH
• Research * MeSH
• Research Report MeSH
• Sense of Coherence MeSH
• Check Tag
• Adult MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH

Background: This study examined the associations of Internet and computer screen time with school difficulties and the role of sleep quality and soft and energy drinks consumption. Methods: We used data from the cross-sectional Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study collected in 2014 among Slovak adolescents (aged 11.0-15.9 years, N = 7595, 48.1% boys). We examined the inter-relations between time spent with on digital devices (time spent playing digital games or Internet use), sleeping quality (sleeping shortage, sleeping difficulties), soft/energy drinks consumption and school problems (low academic achievement, disliking school, being pressured by schoolwork and truancy), using structural equation modeling. Results: Results showed that the more time adolescents spent on digital devices during leisure time, the more school problems they had. This association was mediated by a higher consumption of soft or energy drinks and a lower quality of sleeping. The direct effect of time spent on digital devices on school problems and its indirect effect via sleeping quality were relatively small (-0.26 and -0.30, respectively, standardized solution), compared with the indirect effect of time spent on digital devices via soft/energy drinks consumption as well as sleeping quality (0.65, standardized solution). Conclusions: Time spent on digital devices is associated with school problems, with sleeping and soft/energy drinks consumption playing a substantial role in this association.

• MeSH
• Time Factors MeSH
• Child MeSH
• Energy Drinks statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Internet statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Cross-Sectional Studies MeSH
• Risk Factors MeSH
• Sleep * MeSH
• Educational Status * MeSH
• Carbonated Beverages statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Video Games statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Habits * MeSH
• Check Tag
• Child MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Geographicals
• Slovakia MeSH

OBJECTIVE: As an excessive gaming is the addiction of the 21th century, purpose of our study was to investigate how sense of coherence interacts with gaming time, choice of various games types, age and gender characteristics. Our task was to evaluate relationship between computer gaming and an adolescent's sense of coherence. METHODS: A cross-sectional study based on a self-reported questionnaire was performed among the representative samples of 1,806 adolescents aged 13-18 years. Adolescents reported the amount of time spent gaming computer games, types of games, as well as sense of coherence. The relations between the choice of computer games type, time spent gaming computer games and sense of coherence of respondents were assessed by odds ratio using multivariate regression analysis. RESULTS: 32.9% of boys and 81.1% of girls reported gaming computer games less than 5 hours per day during the last month (p < 0.001). 30.9% of boys and 4.1% of girls reported gaming computer games more than 10 hours per day during the last month (p < 0.001). Boys and girls aged 13-15 with a weak sense of coherence had significantly higher probability to play action or combat computer games for 5 or more hours per day in comparison to the respondents who had a strong sense of coherence. Also, this probability was 2 times higher among boys than among girls. CONCLUSION: Sense of coherence is a useful tool to identify adolescents who are at risk of excessive gaming. Game playing time is linked to the sense of coherence. Adolescent with a weak sense of coherence had a higher probability to play more times, especially in younger age.

• MeSH
• Time Factors MeSH
• Adolescent Behavior * MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Behavior, Addictive psychology   MeSH
• Cross-Sectional Studies MeSH
• Surveys and Questionnaires MeSH
• Psychology, Adolescent * MeSH
• Video Games psychology   statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Sense of Coherence * MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Geographicals
• Lithuania MeSH

BACKGROUND: Evidence is lacking on the screen-based behaviour of adolescents with a chronic condition. The aim of our study was to analyse differences in screen-based behaviour of adolescents by long-term illness, asthma and learning disabilities. METHODS: We used data from the cross-sectional Health Behaviour of School-aged Children study collected in 2014 among Slovak adolescents (age 13 to 15 years old, N = 2682, 49.7 % boys). We analysed the associations between screen-based behaviour and long-term illness, asthma and learning disabilities using logistic regression models adjusted for gender. RESULTS: We found no associations between screen-based behaviour and long-term illness, except that children with asthma had a 1.60-times higher odds of excessively playing computer games than healthy children (95 % confidence interval of odds ratio (CI): 1.11-2.30). Children with learning disabilities had 1.71-times higher odds of risky use of the Internet (95 % CI: 1.19-2.45). CONCLUSION: Adolescents with a long-term illness or with a chronic condition or a learning disability do not differ from their peers in screen-based activities. Exceptions are children with asthma and children with learning disabilities, who reported more risky screen-based behaviour.

• MeSH
• Asthma epidemiology   MeSH
• Chronic Disease epidemiology   MeSH
• Ethnicity MeSH
• Internet statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Logistic Models MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Odds Ratio MeSH
• Computers statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Learning Disabilities epidemiology   MeSH
• Cross-Sectional Studies MeSH
• Sedentary Behavior * MeSH
• Television statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Video Games statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Health Behavior MeSH
• Check Tag
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Geographicals
• Slovakia MeSH

We examined the effect of habitual regulation of massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) playing on the problematic (addictive) usage and excessiveness of gaming (time that user spent playing weekly, per session, and in relation to his other leisure activities). We developed the approach to assess the strength of habitual regulation that was based on sensitivity to situational cues. We defined cues as real-life or in-game conditions (e.g., work to be done, activities with friends or family, need to relax, new game expansion) that usually promote gaming (proplay cues) or prevent it (contraplay cues). Using a sample of 377 MMORPG players, we analyzed relationships between variables through partial least squares path modeling. We found that proplay cues sensitivity significantly positively affected the excessiveness of gaming (playing time) as well as the occurrence of problematic usage symptoms. Conversely, contraplay cues sensitivity functioned as a protective factor from these conditions; significant negative effects were found for playing time and problematic usage. Playing time was confirmed to be a mediating variable, affected by cues sensitivity and at the same time affecting problematic usage symptoms. We obtained moderately strong coefficients of determination for both endogenous variables (R(2) = 0.28 for playing time; R(2) = 0.31 for problematic usage) suggesting that the proposed variables possess good explanatory power. Based on our results, we argue that the strength of habitual regulation within MMORPG usage has both positive and negative effects on excessive and problematic usage, which is a new and important finding within the area of Internet gaming addiction.

• MeSH
• Child MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Role Playing * MeSH
• Internet statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Middle Aged MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Young Adult MeSH
• Behavior, Addictive diagnosis   epidemiology   MeSH
• Cues MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Video Games statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Leisure Activities * MeSH
• Habits * MeSH
• Check Tag
• Child MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Middle Aged MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Young Adult MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Aged MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH

OBJECTIVES: This study investigated the differences between non-excessive, moderately excessive, and highly excessive internet use among adolescents. These differences were explored in terms of personal characteristics, psychological difficulties, environmental factors, and manner of internet use. METHODS: A representative sample was investigated, consisting of 18,709 adolescents aged 11-16 and their parents, from 25 European countries. Excessive internet use was measured using a five item scale covering following factors: salience, conflict, tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, and relapse and reinstatement. The main data analysis utilised multinomial and binary logistic regression models. RESULTS: The vast majority of respondents reported no signs of excessive internet use. Moderately excessive users (4.4%) reported higher emotional and behavioural difficulties, but also more sophisticated digital skills and a broader range of online activities. The highly excessive users (1.4%) differed from the non-excessive and moderately excessive users in their preference for online games and in having more difficulties with self-control. CONCLUSIONS: Adolescents who struggle with attention and self-control and who are inclined toward online gaming may be especially vulnerable to the otherwise uncommon phenomenon of excessive internet use.

• MeSH
• Time Factors MeSH
• Adolescent Behavior psychology   MeSH
• Child MeSH
• Mental Health * MeSH
• Risk Assessment MeSH
• Internet utilization   MeSH
• Confidence Intervals MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Logistic Models MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Multivariate Analysis MeSH
• Behavior, Addictive * MeSH
• Odds Ratio MeSH
• Attention physiology   MeSH
• Cross-Sectional Studies MeSH
• Surveys and Questionnaires MeSH
• Self Concept MeSH
• Video Games statistics & numerical data   MeSH
• Check Tag
• Child MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Adolescent MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Comparative Study MeSH
• Geographicals
• Europe MeSH