title: Scholars' open debate paper on the World Health Organization ICD-11 Gaming Disorder proposal.
abstract: Concerns about problematic gaming behaviors deserve our full attention. However, we claim that it is far from clear that these problems can or should be attributed to a new disorder. The empirical basis for a Gaming Disorder proposal, such as in the new ICD-11, suffers from fundamental issues. Our main concerns are the low quality of the research base, the fact that the current operationalization leans too heavily on substance use and gambling criteria, and the lack of consensus on symptomatology and assessment of problematic gaming. The act of formalizing this disorder, even as a proposal, has negative medical, scientific, public-health, societal, and human rights fallout that should be considered. Of particular concern are moral panics around the harm of video gaming. They might result in premature application of diagnosis in the medical community and the treatment of abundant false-positive cases, especially for children and adolescents. Second, research will be locked into a confirmatory approach, rather than an exploration of the boundaries of normal versus pathological. Third, the healthy majority of gamers will be affected negatively. We expect that the premature inclusion of Gaming Disorder as a diagnosis in ICD-11 will cause significant stigma to the millions of children who play video games as a part of a normal, healthy life. At this point, suggesting formal diagnoses and categories is premature: the ICD-11 proposal for Gaming Disorder should be removed to avoid a waste of public health resources as well as to avoid causing harm to healthy video gamers around the world.
authors.affiliation: 1 Center for Computer Games Research, IT University of Copenhagen , Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Espen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Aarseth
authors.affiliation: 2 Department of Psychology, Framingham State University , Framingham, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Anthony M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Bean
authors.affiliation: 3 UC-Leuven-Limburg, CAD Limburg , Hasselt, Belgium.
authors.forename: Huub
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Boonen
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health , Baltimore, MD, USA.
authors.forename: Michelle
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Colder Carras
authors.affiliation: 5 Department of Psychology, Middlesex University , Hendon, London, UK.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Coulson
authors.affiliation: 6 CAD Limburg , Hasselt, Belgium.
authors.forename: Dimitri
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Das
authors.affiliation: 7 Psychology Department, Université Catholique de Louvain (UCL) , Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
authors.forename: Jory
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Deleuze
authors.affiliation: 8 Department of Applied Educational Science, Umeå University , Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: Elza
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Dunkels
authors.affiliation: 9 Centre for Social Research on Alcohol and Drugs (SoRAD) & Department of Sociology, Stockholm University , Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Johan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Edman
authors.affiliation: 10 Department of Psychology, Stetson University , DeLand, FL, USA.
authors.forename: Christopher J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Ferguson
authors.affiliation: 11 GGZ Momentum , Veldhoven, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Maria C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Haagsma
authors.affiliation: 12 Department of Sociology, Stockholm University , Sweden.
authors.forename: Karin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Helmersson Bergmark
authors.affiliation: 13 Department of Life Sciences, University of Derby , UK.
authors.forename: Zaheer
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hussain
authors.affiliation: 14 Department of Media & Communication, ERMeCC, Erasmus University Rotterdam , Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Jeroen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jansz
authors.affiliation: 15 Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet , Stockholm, Sweden.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kardefelt-Winther
authors.affiliation: 16 Independent Researcher, USA.
authors.forename: Lawrence
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kutner
authors.affiliation: 17 Department of Psychology, Villanova University , Villanova, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Markey
authors.affiliation: 1 Center for Computer Games Research, IT University of Copenhagen , Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: Rune Kristian Lundedal
authors.initials: RKL
authors.lastname: Nielsen
authors.affiliation: 18 Liberos , Los Angeles, USA.
authors.forename: Nicole
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Prause
authors.affiliation: 19 Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford , Oxford, UK.
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Przybylski
authors.affiliation: 20 Department of Communication, University of Münster , Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: Thorsten
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Quandt
authors.affiliation: 21 Psychological Sciences and Technology, UKE, Kore University of Enna , Enna, Italy.
authors.forename: Adriano
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schimmenti
authors.affiliation: 22 Discipline of Psychiatry, The University of Sydney , Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Vladan
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Starcevic
authors.affiliation: 23 Clinical Psychologist/Neuropsychologist, USA.
authors.forename: Gabrielle
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Stutman
authors.affiliation: 24 Department of Communication Sciences, imec-MICT-Ghent University , Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Van Looy
authors.affiliation: 24 Department of Communication Sciences, imec-MICT-Ghent University , Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Antonius J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Van Rooij
mesh_terms: D016739:Behavior, Addictive / Q000145:classification* / Q000175:diagnosis*; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D000068957:Games, Recreational; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D057545:Social Stigma; D018910:Video Games; D014944:World Health Organization
keywords: DSM-5; ICD-11; diagnosis; gaming disorder; moral panic; negative implications