Gaming Disorder in Young People: Signs and Support

Signs that warrant a closer look

Look for a pattern across settings rather than one difficult evening. Concerns may include:

• repeated inability to stop or reduce play despite a clear plan and significant consequences
• gaming increasingly taking priority over sleep, school, movement, self-care, relationships or activities the young person values
• continuing or escalating play despite worsening wellbeing, conflict, financial harm or academic problems
• persistent secrecy about accounts, contacts, purchases or the amount of time spent playing
• gaming becoming the main or only reliable way to manage distress, loneliness, boredom or social difficulty
• marked impairment that continues over time rather than ordinary frustration during transitions

These signs can have several explanations. Anxiety, low mood, attention or executive-function difficulties, autism, learning needs, bullying, trauma, family stress, sleep problems and social isolation may contribute. Gaming may be the main difficulty, a coping strategy, or both.

What an assessment may involve

A GP, psychologist, psychiatrist or other appropriately qualified clinician may gather information from the young person and caregivers and, where appropriate, the school. Assessment can include:

• the games played, devices, social features, spending and usual pattern across weekdays, weekends and holidays
• control over starting, stopping and returning to other activities
• effects on sleep, education, relationships, physical health, self-care and emotional wellbeing
• the young person’s view of what gaming provides and what they would lose if it changed
• co-occurring mental health, developmental, learning, family and safety concerns
• strengths, protective relationships and activities that remain important to the young person

Online questionnaires can support a conversation but should not be treated as a diagnosis on their own.

How families can respond

Begin with curiosity and safety

Choose a calm time and ask the young person what they enjoy, who they play with, what feels difficult and what they think is being affected. Avoid labels such as “addicted” during an argument. Shame can reduce honesty and make it harder to understand the function of gaming.

Set one observable priority

Start with the greatest current risk, such as restoring sleep, attending school, stopping unapproved spending or closing unsafe contact. Agree on a specific change and review it after a defined period. A complete ban may be necessary for an immediate safety issue, but abrupt removal without a broader plan can intensify conflict and leave the underlying need unaddressed.

Make transitions predictable

• Agree on when gaming can begin and finish.
• Use warnings that fit the structure of the game, such as before a new round begins.
• Protect devices from bedrooms overnight when sleep is affected.
• Plan the next activity rather than leaving a sudden empty period.
• Keep boundaries calm and brief during conflict, then review the plan later.

Replace the function, not only the screen

If gaming provides friendship, competence, structure or relief from distress, reducing it without another way to meet that need may not last. Help the young person rebuild offline connection, movement, mastery, rest and support in forms that are realistic and accessible.

Check game safety and spending

Review privacy, chat, friend requests, reporting tools, subscriptions, virtual currency and purchases. Australian classifications now place games with paid chance-based items such as loot boxes at a minimum M classification. Games with simulated gambling are classified R 18+ and legally restricted to adults.

Treatment and support

Treatment should be based on an individual assessment. Psychological approaches may address motivation, thoughts and habits linked with gaming, emotion regulation, family communication, routines and co-occurring concerns. Cognitive behavioural approaches are commonly studied, but the evidence base is still developing and no single program is appropriate for every young person.

Family involvement can be important, particularly for children and adolescents. The aim is not necessarily to remove every game. It is to restore safety, choice and everyday functioning, with goals that the young person can understand and participate in.

Quirky Kid’s Arousal Regulation online lesson can help young people aged 10 to 16 notice physical and mental activation and practise regulation strategies. It is an educational resource, not a treatment for Gaming Disorder.

When to seek help promptly

Seek professional support when gaming is persistently affecting sleep, education, relationships, self-care, physical health or emotional wellbeing, or when attempts to change the pattern repeatedly fail. Contact a GP or mental health professional when there are concerns about depression, anxiety, aggression, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, severe withdrawal from daily life or another condition.

Call Triple Zero on 000 if anyone is in immediate danger. Young people can contact Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800. Lifeline is available on 13 11 14.

What to remember

• Frequent gaming is not automatically Gaming Disorder.
• Diagnosis requires impaired control, priority, continuation despite harm and significant functional impairment.
• Consider what gaming provides and assess co-occurring concerns.
• Start with the highest safety or functioning priority and use a predictable plan.
• Seek individual assessment when the pattern is persistent, severe or difficult to change.