Chapter II

In this modern world, everything is upgraded, where almost everything

depends on the usage of the Internet. After the invention of the Internet, gaming

sites and mobile gaming became more popular to the people, especially to the

younger generation. For this, the excessive time for playing video games is

introduced, which may cause unproductivity of the students.

A) Review of Related Literature

1a. Foreign Literature

Based on the USA Today Network (2018), the World Health Organization says

that compulsively playing video games now qualifies as a new mental health

condition; in a move that some critics warn may risk stigmatizing too many young

players.

Also, in the article of Kimberly Young (2009), excessive gaming has been

identified as a specific subtype of Internet addiction (Block, 2008). “Video games

may look innocent, but they can be addictive as gambling or drugs and just as hard

to kick,” explained by Keith Bakker, director of Amsterdam-based Smith and Jones

Addiction Consultants and founder of the center.

Another related article by The Guardian (Przybyliski and Orben,2018), Video

games played on smart phones, tablets, computers and consoles have been a

popular form of leisure for some time now. In Europe, recent figures indicate that
games are played by more than two thirds of children and adolescents, and a

substantial number of adults now play games – 38% in the UK, 64% in France,

56% in Germany and 44% in Spain.

1b. Local Literature

According in the Pinoy Gamer forum, “As gamers; gaming is a form of leisure, a

hobby or an escape from the harsh world we have in Philippines. We are not saying

this is not serious issue, but we feel as gamers that the media is being biased with

this. So instead saying gaming is an addiction takes a look why people are getting

addicted from the first place.”

In the article on Gameshogun (Cuneta,2011), addictions to Internet games,

particularly massive multiplayer online role-play games (MMORPGS), have

emerged as a threat to public health - a new epidemic. Although they pose no

direct physical danger, they take a toll on the mental wellbeing of players. This

disease is as equally debilitating as an addiction to drugs or alcohol. The article

also posed that the effects of the gaming is not that bad to be considered as an

addiction.

B) Review of Related Studies

2a. Foreign Studies

According to the study of Ko, Yen, et.al. (2005), Adolescents in Taiwan have

been encouraged to use the Internet to increase academic competitiveness.

However, Lin and Tsai (2002) reported that 11.7% of high school students have

developed addiction to Internet use, which can impair academic performance,

psychological well-being, and interaction with peers and family members (Whang

et al., 2003). Adolescent psychosocial development may also be impeded.

Also, in the study of Wittek, Finseras, et. al. (2015), Video gaming is one of the

most popular contemporary recreational activities. It has been shown that 59 % of

all Americans play video games (Ipsos MediaCT 2014). An average of 48 % of

Europeans has played video games (Ipsos MediaCT 2012), and that 56 % of

young adult Norwegians (aged 16–40 years) play video games regularly (Mentzoni

et al. 2011). Among adolescents, the proportion of players is even higher, as

demonstrated in a survey showing that 97 % of Americans aged 12–17 years play

video games (Lenhart et al. 2008).

Another related study to review by Ng and Wiemer-Hastings (2005), users who

tried to cutback the time they spent on the Internet to avoid these addiction-related

problems could not. Young concluded that users do become addicted and that

there is a potential for more addictive applications in the future. With the availability

of three-dimensional (3D) graphics in games, it became possible to build 3D visual

representations of the once text-only MUDS. Now, users are able to see and

interact with others in virtual worlds. These massively multiplayer online role-

playing games (MMORPGs), such as "Everquest" and "Ultima Online," have been

categorized as "heroinware" by many of its users, as they contain all of the

addictive elements of IRC and MUDS. MMORPGs, which are run continuously in

real time, feature social and competitive aspects, making devotion to the game

mandatory. While traditional videogames end at some point or become repetitive

and boring, MMORPGs are endless, because the main feature of MMORPGs is

its system of goals and achievements.

2b. Local Studies

In the Philippines, a study by Rayo (2012), majority of the gamers of the country

are playing DOTA and regarding it as their specialty compared to playing games

like Ragnarok, Tantra, Clash of Clans, etc. These factors make playing DOTA to

become a ‘booming’ culture here in the country, and it continues to flourish since

2003.

In the study of Lumbay et. Al (2017), majority of the computer gamers had

already been playing computer games while they were still a junior high school

student, and most of them plays Mobile Legends, this result strongly suggests that

computer gaming exists not only among college students but also amongst high

school students. Most of the gamers were good performers in the academe, this

supports the belief of Prensky (2006), that video and computer game playing, done

appropriately, is actually very beneficial to today's "Digital Native" kids, who use

them to prepare for life in the 21st century. The rest of the results compliments with

the results of the previous studies cited in the review of related studies in this study

(e.g. all of the gamers were males, most the gamers were adolescents).

Also, according in the study of Cortes et. al (2012), studies indicate that children

who play computer games can improve visual intelligence skills. Parents believed
that computer use is related to better academic performance of the children. It was

found that high school students who used educational software at home scored

significantly higher on computer literacy tests than other students. Computer use

at home is also associated with improvements in general academic performance.

Other studies also found that students who own computers at home had higher

over-all grades, particularly in Math and English, than those without home

computers.