The Relationship Between Digital Game Addiction and Psychological Resilience in University Students

Abstract: Playing digital games in a controlled manner can be beneficial, as it allows individuals to relax. However, if young people cannot control their desire to play, it can negatively affect their daily lives. In this case, we talk about the concept of addiction. If digital games are played at an addictive level, they can reduce the psychological resilience of young people. This situation will make it difficult for young people to cope with the problems that may occur in their lives. In this sense, this study was performed to investigate the relationship between digital game addiction and psychological resilience among university students. This study was carried out with a cross-sectional and correlational design. The sample of the study included 1017 university students who were informed about the objective of the study and filled out the data collection forms. The data were collected using a Personal Information Form, the Digital Game Addiction Scale for University Students, and the Brief Resilience Scale. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences Statistics software, version 27.0 (IBM SPSS Corp.; Armonk, NY, USA), was utilized in the analysis of the obtained data. While 8.2% of the participants were in the addicted group, 1.9% were in the highly addicted group. The male participants had significantly higher mean Digital Game Addiction Scale for University Students (p = .0001) and Brief Resilience Scale (p = .0001) than the female participants. In addition, a weak, negative, and statistically significant relationship was identified between the Brief Resilience Scale scores and the Digital Game Addiction Scale for University Students scores of the participants (r = −.110, p = .001). Consequently, as the digital game addiction levels of the participants increased, their psychological resilience levels decreased. Psychological help units for students, mental health centers, student counseling services, and faculty members should play an active part in the early identification of the digital game addiction and psychological resilience levels of students on university campuses, raising the awareness of students regarding digital game addiction, and increasing their psychological resilience levels by resolving their potentially harmful habits.

Cite this article as: Özsavran, M., & Kuzlu Ayyıldız, T. (2024). The relationship between digital game addiction and psychological resilience in university students. Addicta: The Turkish Journal on Addictions, 11(1), 60-68.