Can you blame video game addiction for young men dropping (or failing?) out of college?

[Anonymous]

Or are video games more-so typically just a symptom or outlet, not the underlying cause? As in, the underlying cause is something like immaturity, depression, and/or lack of preparation? Just trying to wrap my head around this. Most boys play video games at college, right? But most don't let it lead to ditching classes and not turning in any work though.

[Anonymous]

Did for my brother who failed out twice. He stayed up all night playing video games and slept all day. Never went to class.

[Anonymous]

I think this is a bigger problem than most people realize. A simple diversion to blow off steam can become wildly immersive and results in a lot of wasted time.

I personally know someone who told me his World of Warcraft addiction cost him an extra semester in grad school.

Don’t send your kids to college with video games.

[Anonymous]

When I was in college a friend flunked out by watching daytime soaps. I don't think video games are so much more addictive that they are in a special category.

[Anonymous]

My daughter’s roommate almost flunked out because she spent 10 hours a day surfing the internet

[Anonymous]

That would be parental failure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That would be parental failure.

Exactly. Teach them to manage time. Video game consoles have been around since the early 80s. Not like it's a new phenomenon.

[Anonymous]

I think you can blame untreated or poorly treated ADHD, which can lead to poor impulse control and video game/ internet addictive type behavior— especially in boys. Basicly, hyper focusing on the game and not being able to resist one more turn.

The good news is that a combo of medication, assistance with executive functioning skills, therapy focused on helping the kid understanding the dynamic and the kid being willing to; wanting to modify their behavior And get out of a place where they are failing can work wonders. So can pulling the video games out of their dorm room, exercise, play an instrument or do something else with their hands, etc.

But by college, you need the kid to buy in. Which is why addressing it as a medical issue will help them treat rather than asa moral failing gets much better results. And is better for your relationship with the kid.

But yes, this is a real issue for ADHD boys.

[Anonymous]

Can you blame DCUM addiction for posters failing at life?

[Anonymous]

Given the huge number of people who enjoy video games without issue, I think it is important to look beyond the game to the person playing it in order to diagnose their problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That would be parental failure.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:That would be parental failure.

Very naive comment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you blame DCUM addiction for posters failing at life?

I can! I’m recovering currently.

[Anonymous]

My father flunked out for playing cards all day/night. 30 years later, my friend flunked out for playing video games.

Honestly, I see a lot of similarities between my father and friend, so I don't think it's just video games. Immaturity, lack of self-confidence, inability to process consequences for actions, and plain laziness.

[Anonymous]

I personally know quite a few young men failed out of college because of excessive video game playing.

It's interesting to note that the medical communities have not considered this as a systematic problem. If your son play too much video game and you bring him to see a doctor, the doctor will do thing as there is no guidance.

Because the medical communities do not think this is a systematic problem, there is very little research on what is the cause and effect of excessive game playing. So we are in the dark as far as excessive game playing is concerned.