Investigating the relationship between the addiction to computer games among children and emotion regulation

Addiction is the case of desiring to repeat a group of unrestrainable actions although it is harmful for the mental and physical health of people, or for their social life. With reference to self-restraining, when the point in question is children, there stands a more complicated auto-control structure. Computer games, in which artificial reality has arrived at its peak by the help of advancing computer technology, are easily reachable through computer based tools (smart phones, tablets, game stations). In such a case that is mentioned, computer addiction is often seen among children. The conducted researches revealed that mental, emotional, and physical development of children playing computer games at addiction level is affected negatively. Computer addicted children show emotional inconsistency (being aggressive, asocial, introvert, diffident) and have trouble in controlling their emotions. Besides, they stay weak in terms of adjusting their emotions. This study was conducted with the aim of investigating the relationship between computer addictions and adjusting emotions among children. In this research study, the level of computer addiction among children and the children's capacity to adjust their emotions were tried to be identified through considering several variables, and the relation between these two cases was tried to be detected. This study is based on a quantitative research design. The sample of the study covers 220 children at the ages of 6-13, who play computer games, and their 220 mothers living in the city center of Mersin and its districts. The data of the study was gathered through scales on computer addiction and skill of adjusting emotions, which were confirmed in terms of reliability and validity. The data that was transmitted into computer was analyzed and interpreted by means of statistical techniques. According to the findings of the study, besides being an often faced case, computer addiction among children shows a significant difference in terms of gender, age, and the educational status of mothers. Moreover, the skill of adjusting emotions was found to be showing a significant difference regarding gender and the educational status of mothers. Furthermore, by investigating the relation between these two cases, it may be interpreted that there stands a significant relation between computer addiction among children and skill of adjusting emotions. Key Words: child, computer game addiction, emotion regulation