"Addiction or entertainment?" A study on adults' digital gaming habits.

This cross-sectional survey study examines associations between demographic characteristics, gaming patterns, and six psychological dimensions of digital gaming addiction among adults. Data were collected from 391 adults (aged 18+) engaging in digital gaming using the Digital Game Addiction Scale for Adults (DGAS-A). The scale measured Attachment (reverse-coded; higher scores indicate lower attachment), Shame, Coping, Sad Withdrawal, Angry Withdrawal, Loss of Control, and Negative Consequences. Non-parametric analyses revealed the highest scores on Coping (M = 3.22), while the Attachment subscale mean (M = 3.28, reverse-coded) indicates relatively low gaming attachment in this sample. Spearman's correlation analysis confirmed significant positive associations among all six subdimensions (p < .01), with Loss of Control demonstrating the strongest inter-subscale relationships, underscoring the scale's multidimensional coherence. Males had significantly higher scores on Angry Withdrawal (p = .038); the Attachment finding (p = .037) indicates that males scored higher on this reverse-coded subscale, meaning males reported lower emotional attachment to gaming than females, not higher. Young adults (18-24) demonstrated elevated scores across subdimensions. Digital/creative sector workers showed higher addiction-related scores (p < .001) than traditional sector workers. Married participants reported greater Shame (p = .032), Coping (p = .039), and Angry Withdrawal (p < .001). Multi-platform users and Action/FPS/RPG players exhibited higher addiction-related scores than single-platform and casual gamers. Daily screen time exceeding 7 h was associated with elevated addiction scores. The findings are consistent with the possibility that gaming addiction-related patterns among adults may be shaped by occupational, demographic, and life stage factors, suggesting the phenomenon is not confined to adolescence. The results also raise exploratory questions about whether industry practices that optimise engagement metrics may be associated with addiction-related indicators. All findings are associational and should not be interpreted causally, given the cross-sectional design.