Following up on
previous
indications, the World Health Organization includes "gaming disorder" as a
new mental health condition latest edition of its International Classification
of Diseases,
reports CNN. "I'm not creating a precedent," says Dr. Vladimir Poznyak of
the precedent, saying the WHO has followed "the trends, the developments, which
have taken place in populations and in the professional field." The article
looks at both sides of this, also quoting researchers critical of the change.
Meanwhile, some of the WHO's statements about why this is necessary seem to
indicate not all the facts are in yet:
Ultimately, WHO hopes that
inclusion of gaming disorder in the classification will stimulate debate as well
as further research and international collaboration, Poznyak said.
Game over, so to speak, is to "significantly reduce the current gaps in
knowledge that we have when it comes to the prevalence of these conditions and
when it comes to their nature and management."