Predictives of Digital Game Addiction in Turkish High School Students

Online gaming addiction, which is widely seen in children and young people all over the world, is a serious public health problem. It is important to determine the antecedents of this problem in preventing it. In this context, the aim of the research is to determine the possible effects of gender, age, school type, household monthly income, parental marital status and parental attitude in determining digital game addiction of Turkish high school students. The research used a relational screening model. A total of 295 high school students, 175 female and 120 male, participated in the study. Participants were included in the research using the convenient sampling method. Data were collected using the 'Digital Game Addiction Scale', 'Parenting Attitude Scale' and 'Personal Information Form'. Research findings showed that there was a relationship between high school students' digital game addiction and gender (r=.274), household income (r=.166) and parental marital status (r=143). Additionally, gender, household income and parental marital status were found to predict digital game addiction (R2=.127; F=6.954; p=000). As a result, it can be said that high school students' digital game addiction levels are low, and gender, household income and parental marital status are predictors of digital game addiction.