Religiosity Weakens Gaming Disorder Risk
Published in General & Internal Medicine and Behavioural Sciences & Psychology
Study overview
This work explores how weekly gaming duration relate to mental health outcomes in young university students in Georgia. We assessed gaming hours alongside IGD severity, burnout, loneliness, life satisfaction, financial wellbeing, and self-reported religiosity.
Although overall gaming time in our sample was modest (mean ≈ 8 hours/week), increased gaming hours were associated with higher IGD severity. Male students demonstrated significantly higher IGD scores than female students.
A protective role of religiosity
One of the central findings is that religiosity may act as a protective factor. Students with higher religiosity reported lower IGD severity, and religiosity moderated the relationship between gaming hours and IGD symptoms. This suggests that cultural and psychosocial resources could buffer some of the risks associated with problematic gaming behaviour.
Collaboration
The study was conducted in partnership with the RADAR Center at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (Israel). Working with RADAR allowed us to integrate a broader cross-cultural perspective on digital behavior and mental health, and strengthened the methodological and analytical framework of the project. This collaboration highlights the importance of multidisciplinary and international teamwork in understanding emerging behavioral health challenges.
Why this matters
Most evidence on IGD originates from Western Europe, North America, and East Asia. Our data add insights from the Caucasus region, where cultural norms—including the role of faith communities—may shape coping strategies, socialization, and digital behavior. These findings offer valuable context for public health planning and student mental-health services.
Future directions
We anticipate that longitudinal and interventional research will clarify causal pathways (e.g., whether gaming intensity predicts burnout or vice-versa), and test whether community- or faith-based engagement can mitigate IGD-related harms in young adults.
We welcome discussion, replication efforts, and collaborative work—particularly comparisons across countries and cultures interested in youth mental health, digital behavior, and protective psychosocial factors.
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