Longitudinal follow up of excessive video game players during the COVID-19 pandemic
Seguimiento longitudinal de los jugadores excesivos de videojuegos durante la pandemia de COVID-19
Ozlem Akbulut, Melis Pehlivantürk-Kızılkan, Sinem Akgül, Orhan Derman, Nuray Kanbur
Abstract
Introduction: Excessive video gaming is a problem between adolescent. COVID-19 increased this problem during the pandemic. This study aimed to assess how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced the gaming behaviors of adolescents who engaged in excessive video gaming.
Material and methods: Conducted between June and July 2021, this research constitutes the second phase of a pre-pandemic study involving adolescents aged 11–18 who had previously been identified as playing video games for more than two hours daily. In this phase, the same participants were re-evaluated during the pandemic to assess changes in their gaming habits and associated risk factors. Adolescents who played less than two hours per day served as the control group. Data collected included screen time, substance use, exercise and nutrition habits, and scores from the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale–Short Form (IGDS9-SF), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI).
Results: Among excessive video game players, both screen time (p < 0.001) and daily exercise duration (p = 0.001) increased significantly during the pandemic. There was also an increase in the popularity of online multiplayer and fantasy games. Although excessive players scored significantly higher than the control group on the PSQI and IGDS9-SF, no significant difference was observed in CDI scores (p = 0.091).
Conclusions: Despite the increase in screen time among excessive players, problematic gaming behaviors did not escalate. These participants had received at least one motivational interviewing session following their initial identification of problematic video gaming behavior in the first phase of the study. This intervention may have served as a protective factor against the potential negative effects of the pandemic on problematic gaming, depressive symptoms, sleep disturbances, and sedentary behavior.
Keywords
Resumen
Introducción: El uso excesivo de videojuegos es un problema entre los adolescentes. La COVID-19 agravó este problema durante la pandemia. Este estudio tuvo como objetivo evaluar cómo la pandemia de COVID-19 influyó en el comportamiento de juego de los adolescentes que jugaban videojuegos en exceso.
Material y métodos: Realizada entre junio y julio de 2021, esta investigación constituye la segunda fase de un estudio prepandémico en adolescentes de 11 a 18 años que previamente habían sido identificados por jugar videojuegos durante más de dos horas diarias. En esta fase, los mismos participantes fueron reevaluados durante la pandemia para evaluar los cambios en sus hábitos de juego y los factores de riesgo asociados. Los adolescentes que jugaban menos de dos horas al día sirvieron como grupo de control. Los datos recopilados incluyeron el tiempo frente a la pantalla, el consumo de sustancias, los hábitos de ejercicio y nutrición, y las puntuaciones de la Escala de Trastorno por Juego en Internet - Versión Corta (IGDS9-SF), el Índice de Calidad del Sueño de Pittsburgh (PSQI) y el Inventario de Depresión Infantil (CDI).
Resultados: Entre los jugadores excesivos de videojuegos, tanto el tiempo frente a la pantalla (p < 0,001) como la duración diaria del ejercicio (p = 0,001) aumentaron significativamente durante la pandemia. También se observó un aumento en la popularidad de los juegos multijugador en línea y de fantasía. Si bien los jugadores excesivos obtuvieron puntuaciones significativamente más altas que el grupo control en el PSQI y el IGDS9-SF, no se observaron diferencias significativas en las puntuaciones del CDI (p = 0,091).
Conclusiones: A pesar del aumento del tiempo frente a la pantalla entre los jugadores excesivos, las conductas problemáticas de juego no se intensificaron. Estos participantes habían recibido al menos una sesión de entrevista motivacional tras la identificación inicial de conductas problemáticas de juego en la primera fase del estudio. Esta intervención podría haber servido como factor protector contra los posibles efectos negativos de la pandemia en la conducta problemática de juego, los síntomas depresivos, los trastornos del sueño y el sedentarismo.
Palabras clave
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Submitted date:
05/08/2025
Reviewed date:
08/14/2025
Accepted date:
09/02/2025
Publication date:
09/02/2025
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