Social genomics of healthy and disordered internet gaming
Dados Bibliográficos
| AUTOR(ES) | |
|---|---|
| AFILIAÇÃO(ÕES) | Department of Anthropology Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado 80523‐1787, Department of Sociology Colorado State University Fort Collins Colorado 80523‐1784, Division of Hematology‐Oncology, Department of Medicine University of California, Los Angeles School of Medicine Los Angeles California 90095, Department of Anthropology University of Alabama Tuscaloosa Alabama 35487‐0210, Department of Sociology Social Work, and Anthropology, Utah State University Logan Utah 84322‐0230 |
| ANO | Não informado |
| TIPO | Artigo |
| DOI | 10.1002/ajhb.23146 |
| CITAÇÕES | 3 |
| ADICIONADO EM | 2025-08-18 |
Resumo
ObjectivesTo combine social genomics with cultural approaches to expand understandings of the somatic health dynamics of online gaming, including in the controversial nosological construct of internet gaming disorder (IGD).MethodsIn blood samples from 56 U.S. gamers, we examined expression of the conserved transcriptional response to adversity (CTRA), a leukocyte gene expression profile activated by chronic stress. We compared positively engaged and problem gamers, as identified by an ethnographically developed measure, the Positive and Negative Gaming Experiences Scale (PNGE‐42), and also by a clinically derived IGD scale (IGDS‐SF9).ResultsCTRA profiles showed a clear relationship with PNGE‐42, with a substantial linkage to offline social support, but were not meaningfully associated with disordered play as measured by IGDS‐SF9.ConclusionsOur study advances understanding of the psychobiology of play, demonstrating via novel transcriptomic methods the association of negatively experienced internet play with biological measures of chronic threat, uncertainty, and distress. Our findings are consistent with the view that problematic patterns of online gaming are a proxy for broader patterns of biopsychosocial stress and distress such as loneliness, rather than a psychiatric disorder sui generis, which might exist apart from gamers' other life problems. By confirming the biological correlates of certain patterns of internet gaming, culturally‐sensitive genomics approaches such as this can inform both evolutionary theorizing regarding the nature of play, as well as current psychiatric debates about the appropriateness of modeling distressful gaming on substance addiction and problem gambling.