14 DAY TRIAL // The Entertainment Software Association has taken point in trying to halt the publication of a new study inferring that some 8.5% of gamers are addicted. The organization has made quite some noise, showing the errors that have crept into the study methodology and pleading with the Psychological Science magazine to withhold publication until all the objections are addressed.
The study, which has been conducted by a Doctor Douglas Gentile, from the Iowa State University, concluded that almost 10 percent of the overall gaming population is thoroughly addicted to the activity, playing more than 24 hours in one week and exhibiting at least six of the symptoms that are a sign of addiction, like lying about play habits, becoming irritable when not playing and even stealing to support their habit.
Michael Gallagher, who is the Chief Executive Officer of the Entertainment Software Association, sent a letter to the Psychological Science magazine, detailing the problems with the study. The main issue was that all the participants in the study were recruited through an online panel that is said to have offered prizes for participation.
Gallagher stated that “As you are likely aware, such a sample is not truly representative of a national population group. Thus the results cannot be projected onto the broader population of children in this country. And the sampling error of plus or minus 3% that Dr. Gentile cited in the study is also meaningless.” He pointed out that Gentile himself admitted that the sample used in the study was flawed, which makes the conclusions flawed as well.
The main request coming from the ESA is that the magazine accompanies all the copies it sends out with material showing that the study is not accurate, pointing out where the methodology breaks down and how it influenced the results.