Problem video game use and dimensions of psychopathology

The objective of this study was to examine associations between problem video game use and psychopathology. The Video Game Use Questionnaire (VGUQ) and the Symptom Checklist 90 (SCL-90) were administered in an international anonymous online survey. The VGUQ was used to identify problem video game users and SCL-90 assessed dimensions of psychopathology. In comparison with other video game players (n=1789), those with problem video game use (n=156) had significantly elevated scores on all SCL-90 subscales. When compared to the U.S. male nonpatients, a significantly greater proportion of male video game players exhibited higher levels of all psychopathology. These findings suggest that there is a non-specific relationship between various domains of psychopathology and video game use in general and problem video game use in particular.