The predictive power of impaired control after controlling for correlates of gaming disorder

Impaired control (IC) is a defining feature of behavioural addictions including gaming disorder (GD), but few psychometric studies have investigated the predictive power of a dedicated IC measure. In this study, we examine the predictive power of a recently developed IC measure, the Impaired Control Over Gaming Scale (ICOGS), after controlling for known correlates of gaming disorder, including play frequency, gaming urges and negative mood states. A sample of 513 regular gamers, recruited through the online platform Prolific, completed a survey consisting of validated measures, including Petry et al.’s (2014) gaming disorder (GD) measure. Positive correlations were found between GD scores and IC, gaming urges, depression, anxiety, stress and play frequency. A hierarchical linear regression showed that the IC measure explained an additional variance of 10.8% in GD after controlling for the other measures and was the strongest predictor. This study supports the view that IC is an important construct to measure and monitor in research and clinical assessments of GD. Assessing IC in greater detail offers multiple benefits, including: early detection and intervention to prevent escalating problem behaviours and mitigating negative consequences of gaming disorder, personalized treatment to address specific aspects of impaired control, and identification of specific risk factors and treatment progress monitoring with clinicians being able to adapt treatments plans based on IC scores.