Internet Gaming Disorder Treatment: A Case Study Evaluation of Four Different Types of Adolescent Problematic Gamers
Open accessAbstract
Research examining Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) has grown markedly in recent years. However, research on its psychological treatment is still scarce, especially with respect to efficacy of specific programs. The PIPATIC (Programa Individualizado Psicoterapéutico para la Adicción a las Tecnologías de la Información y la Comunicación) program is a 22-session specialized treatment for adolescents with IGD. The present paper briefly outlines the cases of four treatment-seeking male adolescents aged between 13 and 18 years with different clinical IGD profiles undergoing the treatment. A case study using an A-B-A’ withdrawal design was conducted. After completing the PIPATIC program, all participants showed clinical improvement in the amount of time spent using video games and in the symptoms of IGD. Results also demonstrated they received lower scores on clinical tests related to comorbid disorders. In an area with so few studies relating to IGD treatment, the present study is of existential value and contributes clinical information concerning the treatment of IGD in treatment-seeking adolescent patients.
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PIPATIC has been effective in reducing addiction and ensuring reintegration into the community in patients diagnosed with internet gaming disorder.
“PIPATIC has been effective in reducing addiction and ensuring reintegration into the community in patients diagnosed with internet gaming disorder (31, 32).”
From Reaching hidden youth in Singapore through the Hidden Youth Intervention Program: A biopsychosocial approach integrating mental health and social work interventions (2023) · cites this paper as [32]
The Results (page unavailable) report that IGD scores improved in four treated adolescents and remained stable three months later; school, social-problem, and family-conflict scores also improved. These findings support reduced gaming-disorder symptoms, but they do not establish that PIPATIC ensured reintegration into the community, or demonstrate effectiveness beyond the four cases studied. (LLM, conf=0.87)
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Neurobiological correlates in Internet gaming disorder: a systematic literature review
Kuss, D. J., Pontes, H. M., & Griffiths, M. D. (2018) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00166 · Cited by 281 · see citing works
Self-citationKhiatani, S., Liu, D., Yeo, B. S. S., & Wong, J. C. M. (2023) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1133659 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
“PIPATIC has been effective in reducing addiction and ensuring reintegration into the community in patients diagnosed with internet gaming disorder (31, 32).”
Background
- Authors
- Torres-Rodríguez, A., Griffiths, M. D., Carbonell, X., Farriols-Hernando, N., & Torres-Jimenez, E.
- Affiliations
- Universitat Ramon Llull (ES)
- Nottingham Trent University (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Torres-Rodríguez, Alexandra
- Griffiths, Mark D.
- Venue
- International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction
- Published
- 2017-12-05
- Volume
- 17
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 1-12
- ISSN
- 1557-1874 (ISSN-L)
- 1557-1882
- OpenAlex
- W2771997564
- Cited by
- 97
- References
- 10
- Citations by year
- 2025: 2 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 50 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 2 · 2017: 1
- FWCI
- 43.41
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Nottingham Trent University's Institutional Repository (Nottingham Trent Repository) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- RECERCAT (Consorci de Serveis Universitaris de Catalunya) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Nottingham Trent University
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Gambling Behavior and Treatments
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology
- Keywords
- internet gaming disorder, video game use, comorbidities, treatment efficacy, withdrawal design
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