Mark D. Griffiths

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Mark D. Griffiths
EducationBSc in Psychology, PhD in Psychology
OccupationDistinguished Professor of Behavioural Addiction
Employer Nottingham Trent University
Known forResearch of "Game addiction" and "Gambling"
TitleDirector of the International Gaming Research Unit

Mark D. Griffiths is an English chartered psychologist focusing in the field of behavioural addictions, namely gambling disorder, gaming addiction, Internet addiction, sex addiction, and work addiction. He is a Professor of Behavioural Addiction at Nottingham Trent University and director of the International Gaming Research Unit. [1] He is the author of five books including Gambling Addiction and its Treatment Within the NHS, Gambling and Gaming Addictions in Adolescence, and Adolescent Gambling. He has also authored over 600 refereed papers, 140+ book chapters and more than 1,500 articles, [1] and has won 15 awards for his research, including a Lifetime Achievement Award For Contributions to the Field of Youth Gambling in 2006 and International Excellence Award For Gambling Research in 2003 and a Lifetime Research Award For Gambling Research in 2013. [2]

Contents

Education and career

Griffiths graduated with a BSc in Psychology from the University of Bradford. He began teaching in 1988 while working on his PhD at University of Exeter. He was a lecturer for the Workers' Education Association and did weekly support teaching at Exeter University. He completed his PhD thesis on fruit machine addiction at Exeter University in 1990, under the supervision of Paul Webley and Stephen Lea. [3] Having acquired his degree, in 1990 he started his first full-time lectureship at the University of Plymouth, where he also gained his teaching qualifications. In 1995 he moved to Nottingham Trent University, where he has worked since and is currently a Professor of Gambling Studies. [4]

Over the course of his career, Griffiths has served on over 20 national and international committees, including the European Association for the Study of Gambling, Society for the Study of Gambling, Gamblers Anonymous General Services Board, National Council on Gambling, and GamCare. He is an editorial board member of International Gambling Studies, Journal of Gambling Issues, International Journal of Casino and Business, International Journal of Cyber Behavior, Psychology and Learning, and Aloma: Revista de Psicologia, and has advised governmental bodies in the UK, Australia, Canada, Israel, Finland, Sweden and Norway. [2] Over the past five years Griffiths and members of the Gaming Research Unit have worked with various international and national game companies to help develop social responsibility guidelines and policies, carry out audits of social responsibility practices within online and offline gaming environments, develop harm minimisation practices within gaming environments, help design safer gaming products and assess psychosocial impact of new games, and provide research and consultancy services in the psychology of gaming practices. Some of these companies include the United Kingdom Gambling Commission, the Canadian Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation, the Irish National Lottery, and Casino Cosmopol. [5]

In early 2007, Griffiths opposed the hosting of a super-style casino in Blackpool, arguing that it "wasn't typical in terms of demographics, and that the proposed seafront location was too close to the poorest residential areas of town," and supporting the location of the casino in Manchester. [6] In 2014, Griffiths was featured in an extensive interview with RightCasino.com. [7] In the course of the discussion, he recommended that the commercial gambling industry emulate the Camelot Group, who derive their profits from a comparatively large pool of customers, thus spreading the financial and social impact of gambling losses. He also described the proclivity of adolescents to develop addictive behaviours through playing free, casino-style games on social media platforms (e.g. Zynga Poker). He criticised such games as the "number one risk factor for adolescent gambling addiction."

Research fields

Griffiths' research focuses on the psychology of excessive behavior. His research interests include online research methods, internet studies, cyberpsychology, behavioural addiction, gambling addiction, video game addiction, internet addiction, exercise addiction, and sex addiction. [8] He has also conducted research in social responsibility in gambling and teaching and learning in higher education. [5] In these fields he has published over 400 refereed research papers, three books, 70 book chapters and over 1,000 other articles. He is best recognised for his work on gambling and game addiction where, for example, he explores how people from different ages are drawn to gambling. For example, he has reported that demo versions and online "skill schools" where players gamble with points rather than money appeal more to teenagers than adults. [9] Furthermore, he has established that factors such as earning points, finding rare game items, and fast loading times are more important for video game players than gender, age, and time spent playing. [10] [11]

He has written on egomania, which he defines as an obsessive preoccupation with the self, [12] teratophilia [13] and pandrogyny. [14]

Prominent findings

A 2007 study, co-authored with Helena Cole, explored social interactions that occur both within and outside of MMORPGs. [15] Griffiths and Cole surveyed 912 MMORPG players across 45 countries. The study showed that social interactions in MMORPGs are a major component in the enjoyment of playing video games. The study also showed MMORPGs "can be extremely social games, with a high percentage of gamers making lifelong friends and partners". The study concluded that "virtual gaming may allow players to express themselves in ways they might not feel comfortable doing in real life because of their appearance, gender, sexuality, and/or age". This study is one of several that Griffiths has conducted on the topic of how video games affect social interactions.

Awards

Griffiths has received awards including: [2] [16]

Books

Journal publications

Related Research Articles

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Computer addiction is a form of behavioral addiction that can be described as the excessive or compulsive use of the computer, which persists despite serious negative consequences for personal, social, or occupational function. Another clear conceptualization is made by Block, who stated that "Conceptually, the diagnosis is a compulsive-impulsive spectrum disorder that involves online and/or offline computer usage and consists of at least three subtypes: excessive gaming, sexual preoccupations, and e-mail/text messaging". Computer addiction is not currently included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) as an official disorder. The concept of computer addiction is broadly divided into two types, namely offline computer addiction, and online computer addiction. Offline computer addiction is normally used when speaking about excessive gaming behavior, which can be practiced both offline and online. Online computer addiction, also known as Internet addiction, gets more attention in general from scientific research than offline computer addiction, mainly because most cases of computer addiction are related to the excessive use of the Internet.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Video game addiction</span> Addiction to computer and video games

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Stanton Peele is a psychologist, attorney, psychotherapist and the author of books and articles on the subject of alcoholism, addiction and addiction treatment.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Effects of pornography</span> Influence of pornography on an individual and their intimate relationships

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Internet addiction disorder</span> Excessive internet use that causes psychological disorders

Internet addiction disorder (IAD) can otherwise be referred to as problematic internet use or pathological internet use. It is generally defined as problematic, compulsive use of the internet, that results in significant impairment in an individual's function in various aspects of life over a prolonged period of time. Young people are at particular risk of developing internet addiction disorder, with case studies highlighting students whose academic performance plummets as they spend more and more time online. Some also experience health consequences from loss of sleep, as they stay up later and later to chat online, check for social network status updates or to further progress in a game.

Social interactions in MMORPGS take the form of in-game communication, virtual behaviors, and the development of interpersonal and group relationships. In massive multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs), cooperation between players to accomplish difficult tasks is often an integral mechanic of gameplay, and organized groups of players, often called guilds, clans, or factions, emerge. Sometimes the relationships players from within the game spill over into friendships or romantic relationships in the material world. In other instances, romantic partners and groups of material world friends find that playing together strengthens their bonds.

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References

  1. 1 2 "Experts: Dr. Mark D. Griffiths, Ph.D." Psychology Today (online). Archived from the original on 11 April 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  2. 1 2 3 "Mark Griffiths, external activity". Nottingham Trent University (online). Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  3. ↑ Griffiths, M. D. (1991). The acquisition, development and maintenance of fruit machine gambling in adolescents. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Exeter.
  4. ↑ "BPS teaching awards" (PDF). The British Psychological Society (online). Retrieved 4 March 2013.
  5. 1 2 "Mark Griffiths, research". Nottingham Trent University (online). Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  6. ↑ Benjamin, Alison (7 February 2007). "Gambling professor backs casino winner". The Guardian . London. Retrieved 10 March 2013.
  7. ↑ "Dr Mark Griffiths on gambling: Right Casino interview - RightCasino.com". www.rightcasino.com. 10 March 2014. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  8. ↑ "About Mark Griffiths". academia(online). Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  9. ↑ "Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained?". Psychology Today (online). Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  10. ↑ "Rise of the machines (Part 1)". Psychology Today (online). Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  11. ↑ "Rise of the machines (Part 2)". Psychology Today (online). Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  12. ↑ "The ego has landed: A personal look at egomania". Mark Griffiths (online). Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  13. ↑ "The ugly truth: A brief look at teratophilia". Mark Griffiths (online). 4 March 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  14. ↑ "A gender setting: Inside the world of pandrogyny". Mark Griffiths (online). 16 February 2013. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
  15. ↑ Cole, Helena; Griffiths, Mark D. (1 August 2007). "Social Interactions in Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Gamers". CyberPsychology & Behavior. 10 (4): 575–583. doi:10.1089/cpb.2007.9988. ISSN   1094-9313. PMID   17711367. S2CID   10568225 . Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  16. ↑ "Mark Griffiths Bio". Journalisted(online). Retrieved 8 March 2013.
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