Esports versus gaming addiction: Juxtaposition of perspectives from counselling professionals and from the esports sectors

Abstract

Background: Since the introduction of Gaming Addiction to ICD-11 by WHO, there is a heated debate over the position from counseling psychology to regard esports (and egaming) as a potential threat to mental health for adolescents, or a new opportunity in career counseling. Therefore, this study aims at finding potential protective factors based on experiences from Counselling Professionals and esports players’ own perspectives. Research Questions: 1. how existing theories differs from lived experiences from those who play egames, 2. How motivations of esports players different from ordinary egaming addiction victims. Methodology: Eight representatives from four various counseling associations in Hong Kong, as well as 22 esports players, were invited to participate individual interviews concerning their observation over the differences between gaming addiction and motivation for esports. Data were analyzed with thematic analysis method (Braun & Clarke, 2006), which includes six steps including familization of data, generating initial codes, search for themes, involved reviewing of themes, defining and naming themes, and interpretation and reporting. Results: The following themes are founded: 1) scope of games for esports is much more stringent than psychologists / counselor perceived, 2) different from perspectives from counseling professionals, esports players does not value “buy weapons” and values systematic training in skills and problem solving strategies, which is very different from descriptions of gaming addiction, 3) while those who were involved in gaming addiction would spend money on buying virtual weapons, esports players would spend on training and equipment to enhance performance. Discussion: discrepancies among perspectives is an major obstacle to service delivery among counseling psychologists, and this could be improved by enhanced understanding to the lived experience of esports players. (Project funded by Hong Kong Research Grants Council Institutional Development Scheme Collaborative Research Grant Project Number UGC/IDS(C)15/M01/20).