The relationship between digital game addiction, cyberloafing and psychological well-being in primary school students

Abstract

Introduction: Today, with the advances in technology, the use of devices such as computers, digital game consoles, phones and tablets has also increased. However, with the widespread use of internet access, digital platforms have started to be used frequently in interpersonal interaction and relations. At the same time, the acceleration of urbanization has resulted in the inadequacy of playgrounds. Digital platforms have replaced the traditional games played by children in the streets and playgrounds before, and the virtual world has become the main actor of interpersonal interaction. The use of digital games and internet, where the user age is in a wide range, has decreased to very young ages, and the time spent by individuals in games and on the internet has gradually increased. In this context, the duration of stay in the digital environment can be seen as an important criterion in terms of addiction. Spending excessive time in the digital environment can cause individuals to be adversely affected by psychosocial aspects. The purpose of our study is to reveal the reasons for the complex and multifaceted relationship between cyberloafing, digital game addiction and well-being, and to discuss potential solutions Method: The study group consists of 1330 students studying in a public school. Game addiction scale, perceived cyberloafing scale and psychological well-being scale were applied to students. Conclusion: Our study revealed that cyberloafing and game addiction have triggering effects on each other. It also showed the negative effects of cyberloafing and digital game addiction on psychological well-being.