A study of relation between sports addiction, Internet use, and video gaming among a sample of Egyptian sports clubs’ attendants

Abstract

Abstract Background Addiction is a medical condition characterized by compulsive engagement in rewarding stimuli, despite adverse consequences and is considered a disorder of the brain’s reward system. Exercise addiction (EA) involves excessive concerns for exercise routines, an abusive practice, and the inability to control one’s own behavior, as well as the presence of psychological processes that are typical of behavioral addictions such as abstinence. The aim of the study is to translate and validate the Exercise Dependence Scale 21 Manual and also to detect the presence of sports addiction among a sample of Egyptian sports clubs’ attendants and to find out the rate of Internet and video gaming addiction among them. Results The Exercise Dependence Scale 21, Internet Addiction Test (IAT) Scale and Video Gaming Addiction Scale were used on a convenient sample regularly practicing sports. The participants were divided into 3 groups according to the result of (EDS21-M): (a) sports addicts (exercise-dependent), (b) symptomatic at risk, and (c) control group (asymptomatic non-dependent). The average age of the group of sports addicts was 28.67 years, 88% of the sample were males, the control group showed significantly higher incidence of problematic gaming of 40.8 % compared to only 33.33% among sports addicts, and higher levels of potential problematic Internet use of 28.57% versus 21.43% in the symptomatic at risk of sports addiction and 22.22% in the sports addicts and also 78.43% of cases with sports addiction or symptomatic at risk had normal Internet use versus 71.43% of the control group. The addicted gamers represented 3.92% of the sports addiction and those symptomatic at risk, and 82.35% of the same group showed no problem with video gaming addiction. There were no correlations between exercise dependence and Internet addiction Conclusions Being addicted to sports may absorb most of the time and energy of the person and compensate him psychologically and in physically and mentally healthy ways than to be indulging and spending the time and effort in video gaming and Internet in a pathological addictive way.