Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Gaza Ministry of Health: 6 Palestinians wounded by IOF fire east of Gaza Strip.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: A batch of incendiary balloons were launched towards settlements adjacent to the Gaza Strip.
Turkey's Defense Ministry: 5 Kurdistan Workers Party members killed in an airstrike in northern Iraq.
The Iranian Intelligence Ministry says its forces raided several terrorist hideouts in Tehran and Western Azerbaijan and arrested 28 elements.
Iran's Intelligence Ministry says the terror attacks were aimed at undermining Iran's state security and showing Iran as a destabilized nation.
Iran's Intelligence Ministry says it foiled a terrorist plot being planned for Tehran, with all the culprits getting arrested.
Iranian Defense Ministry says has missiles designed with the intention of striking the Israeli occupation, namely the Hajj Qassem Soleimani missile.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: The Israeli occupation forces raided Birzeit University and arrested three young men in its vicinity.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: The Israeli occupation forces raided the Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarm for several hours, with snipers deployed on the rooftops.
China inaugurates the Asian games in Hangzhou.

OCD and kids: video games, screen time linked to compulsive behavior

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Healthline
  • 17 Dec 2022 20:19
  • 1 Shares

A recent study has found an association between screen time and the development of OCD in preteens, with playing video games and watching videos being the most strongly linked.

  • Video gaming is linked to OCD (Photo: China Photos / Getty Images)
    Video gaming is linked to OCD (Photo: China Photos / Getty Images)

A recent study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health found that the amount of time spent on screens by preteens was linked to the future development of the obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).

In fact, every hour of playing video games increases the risk that a child would develop OCD by 15%, according to to study lead author Dr. Jason Nagata, an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at the University of California San Francisco.

Every additional hour per day of watching videos, such as on YouTube, also increases the odds by 11%.

OCD is a mental disorder that features recurring and intrusive thoughts and makes a person feel urged to perform certain repetitive behaviors, the report says. According to the authors of the study, OCD can have severely debilitating effects that continue to a person's adult life.

How the study was conducted

Nagata and his team chose to examine kids aged 9 and 10 for their study since OCD tends to peak around these ages. 

The study evaluated over 9,000 American children who were analyzed using data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study.

The study was almost equally balanced between girls and boys and was racially and ethnically diverse, and researchers examined data at baseline and two years later.

To determine the time spent on screens, every child took a survey that included questions on how many hours they usually spent on various types of screens, including watching TV or movies, playing video games, watching videos, video chatting, texting, and social media. The results were used to calculate the screen time children engage in on a usual day.

A diagnostic tool, the Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia (KSADS-5), was used to evaluate whether the study participants had OCD at the two-year mark, and researchers found that every additional hour of total screen time was connected to higher odds of having an OCD diagnosis after two years.

Spending hours playing video games and watching videos were the most strongly two screen uses linked to OCD.

Screen time may be linked to OCD development in preteens

In an interview with Healthline, Nagata said that kids who spent a great deal of time playing video games revealed a need to play more and more and an inability to stop even when they needed or wanted to.

“Intrusive thoughts about video game content could develop into obsessions or compulsions,” he explained.

YouTube videos can allow for compulsive viewing, Nagata noted, saying that algorithms and advertisements can exacerbate obsessions and compulsions.

Researchers had one “interesting” observation during the study: no association between traditional television viewing and OCD was found, he noted.

“With traditional television, it’s harder to be so focused on only one area as there are limited channels and programming,” he explained.

  • United States
  • OCD
  • ABCD Study
  • YouTube
  • Videogames
  • screen time
  • Compulsive behavior

Most Read

Ukrainian soldiers ride an APC on the front line near Bakhmut, in the Donetsk region, on June 5, 2023 (AP)

US sees Ukrainian army demoralized, no chance to win: Seymour Hersh

  • Europe
  • 21 Sep 2023
Russia destroyed leopard tank in Ukraine with fully-German crew

Russia destroyed leopard tank in Ukraine with fully-German crew

  • Europe
  • 23 Sep 2023
British mercenary in Ukraine killed by another Brit

British mercenary in Ukraine killed by another Brit

  • Europe
  • 18 Sep 2023
Blinken’s ‘Variable Geometry’ for a New Cold War

Blinken’s ‘Variable Geometry’ for a New Cold War

  • Analysis
  • Today

Coverage

All
Morocco & Libya Disasters

Read Next

All
Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Furhan Al-Saud addresses the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023, at United Nations headquarters. (AP)
Palestine

Saudi FM tells UN regional stability hinges on 'Palestinian state'

Nearly two weeks later, Libya toll tops 3,800
MENA

Nearly two weeks later, Libya toll tops 3,800

A man walks past a mural featuring oil pumps and wells in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, May 21, 2022. (AP)
Latin America

Venezuela boosts oil production amid unilateral restrictive measures

Russia destroyed leopard tank in Ukraine with fully-German crew
Europe

Russia destroyed leopard tank in Ukraine with fully-German crew

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS