{
  "abstract": "Despite having received increasing attention over the past decade, little is known about the factors that can increase or decrease symptoms of problematic gaming (PG) in individuals with different video gaming (VG) habits (e.g., occasional use gamers vs heavy use gamers). Here, we apply a specification curve analysis to assess the impact of changes in two key risk factors, gaming consumption and impulsivity, as well as one protective factor, family environment, on changes in PG symptoms over 2 years in a large sample of Singaporean adolescents between 2007 and 2009. By considering individual differences in baseline video game habits, we show that changes in VG consumption influenced changes in PG in adolescents who reported not usually playing games at study inception (i.e., occasional use gamers), whereas changes in impulsivity influenced PG in those who reported being the most heavy use gamers at study inception. These findings highlight the importance of designing preventative measures that differ as a function of current video game habits. Possible measures may involve introducing gaming progressively (e.g., through setting age-appropriate limits or structured scaffolding with parents) to improve tolerance and reduce preoccupation in occasional gamers while promoting self-control early in development before gaming can become a problematic habit.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Université de Genève, FPSE, Genève, Switzerland.",
    "neuro @campus biotech, Genève, Switzerland.",
    "Digital Wellness Lab, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America.",
    "Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, United States of America."
  ],
  "article_type": "Research Article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1,
        2
      ],
      "name": "Benoit Bediou",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-3477-7948"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Sezen Cekic"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Douglas A Gentile"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0,
        1
      ],
      "name": "Daphne Bavelier",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-5904-1240"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/952y02dxexyme.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1371/journal.pone.0356080",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13686491",
  "id": "952y02dxexyme",
  "issns": [
    "1932-6203"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0356080",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "openalex",
      "3312|Impact of Technology on Adolescents"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Psychology/Behavior"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Psychology/Behavior/Habits"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Psychology/Behavior/Recreation/Games"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Psychology/Behavior/Recreation/Games/Video games"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Biology and life sciences/Psychology/Personality/Personality traits/Impulsivity"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Medicine and health sciences/Epidemiology/Medical risk factors"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/People and places/Population groupings/Age groups/Children/Adolescents"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/People and places/Population groupings/Families/Children/Adolescents"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Psychology/Behavior"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Psychology/Behavior/Habits"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Psychology/Behavior/Recreation/Games"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Psychology/Behavior/Recreation/Games/Video games"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Psychology/Personality/Personality traits/Impulsivity"
    ],
    [
      "plos",
      "/Social sciences/Sociology/Education/Schools"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223157866",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13686491?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13686491",
  "pmid": "42905659",
  "published": "2026-10-21",
  "publisher": "Public Library of Science",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/952y02dxexyme.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:17:23Z",
      "native_id": "10.1371/journal.pone.0356080",
      "source": "plos",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0356080"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:19:53Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42905659",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42905659"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "plos:epidemiology",
      "subfield": "epidemiology-public-health"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Problematic gaming in occasional, low, intermediate or heavy use gamers – not all screen time is created equal – A reanalysis",
  "title_text": "Problematic gaming in occasional, low, intermediate or heavy use gamers – not all screen time is created equal – A reanalysis",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:19:53Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/952y02dxexyme",
  "venue": "PLOS One",
  "versions": []
}