Digital game addiction of high school students: A study on Kırıkkale high school students

The aim of this research is to examine the digital game addiction of high school students. The increase in the number of computer and computer users, depending on the use of the Internet, has increased the use of social media. With the increase in the use of social media, it is seen that the number of digital game users has increased in parallel with the number of internet and social media users. It is seen that digital games are encouraged and made attractive in every field, especially in social media. It is known that playing games is very important for children's development. As a result of the decrease in playgrounds, the increase in environmental distrust, the rapid development of mass media, the replacement of digital spaces with real spaces, children prefer to spend time on the Internet, social media or digital game platforms instead of playing outside with their friends. The fact that the internet, social media and digital game platforms are an alternative to real life causes an increase in the time spent here and accordingly addiction. Digital game addiction, especially for children, adolescents and even adults, causes various problems. In the study, the data were collected using the "Personal Information Form" prepared by the researchers and the "Digital Game Addiction Scale for Children" developed by Hazar and Hazar (2017) to measure the digital game addiction of children, which has validity and reliability. 481 students studying at 6 high schools in Kırıkkale were included in the study. In the study, which was designed according to the quantitative research model, convenience sampling method was used. According to the analysis of the data obtained in the study, it was seen that almost all (92%) of the participating students had access to the internet, and most of them were connected to the internet with their smart phones (76%). It has been observed that students mostly use their smart phones (75%) while playing games. It was determined that most of the students, who were found to play games for at least 0-1 hours (71%) daily, played games with war and violence (23%). It has been determined that male students have higher game addiction levels compared to female students according to all sub-dimensions of digital game addiction, which are focus, value, procrastination, and immersion. It was found that students who use the internet for 0-1 hours a day have lower levels of digital game addiction compared to those who use the internet for 2-3 and 4 hours a day. It has been determined that students who play games with a computer or console have higher levels of digital game addiction than students who play games with a smart phone. It has been determined that those who use social media for 5 years or more have higher levels of digital game addiction compared to those who use them for 1-2 years, according to the value sub-dimension.