Depathologizing Addiction: Considerations of Hegemonic Masculinity in and Around Problematic Video Gaming

Abstract

In 2018, gaming disorder was accepted as a new official addiction diagnosis. Young males are at the highest risk of receiving this diagnosis. Despite that, the relations between video games and masculinity in the context of pathologization have only been discussed very sparsely so far. Employing theories of hegemonic masculinity as a tool of critical review, I explore these relations in three contexts: the industry of video games, the social cultures in and around them, and neoliberal social change. I argue that pathologization of gaming individualizes and risks maintaining broader and deeper issues related to masculinity, gaming, and social inequalities.