Post by leunas on Jul 27, 2006 4:07:38 GMT -5
Thanks to Russ from The Escapist for pointing out that The Australian newspaper has an update on the games addiction clinic that we reported on last week. In Amsterdam, director Keith Baker of the Smith & Jones clinic said that “The phone has been ringing constantly. Computer game addiction is obviously an even greater problem than we imagined.” as he pulled an extra money bag from the bottom drawer of his desk. Ok, I made that last part up.
Last week, Mr Bakker took his first group of “gamers”, as he calls them, on a parachuting trip to take their minds off their computers. Treatment also involves meditation, fitness training and group therapy. It is supervised by what Mr Bakker called “some of the top addiction specialists in the world”.
Nothing like being thrown out of a plane to make you forget about your WoW character for a bit. What I’d really like to know is how many parents they will be turning away because little Billy playing Mario a couple hours a day doesn’t count as an “addiction.” Obviously there’s a need here but I do worry about the novelty of a new therapy leading to a lot of poor diagnosis.
www.passthepress.com/?p=621