När spelen blev farliga
konstruktionen av dataspel som ett socialt problem i svensk press 2000-2006
Video game addictionComputer gamesSocial problemsSocial constructionismMedia studiesDataspelDatorspelDataspelsberoendeDataspelsmissbrukSociala problemSocial konstruktivismMediastudierSocial sciencesSamhällsvetenskaperSociologySociologiSocial changesTheory of social workSociala förändringarTeorier om socialt arbeteSocial Sciences
This essay focuses on the construction of so called "computer game addiction" or "computer game abuse" in the Swedish press during 2000-2006. During this period computer game addiction went from an obscure phenomenon to a legit reason for the involuntary commitment of a fourteen-year-old.The study's theory is based on several social constructionist ideas. Kitsuse and Spector's theories about constructing social problems as claims-making activities are used for understanding the actions of the individual and groups involved. Hewitt and Hall's article about quasi-theory is used to explain the construction of explainations for the new social phenomenon. Blumer's five-stage model is used for categorizing the construction of the new social problem. Goode & Ben-Yehuda's theories about moral panics are used for understanding the more sensational elements of the press material.I found six prominent participants in the construction of the new social problem: the therapists, the organisations, the players, the addicts, the sceptics and the state. It also showed that four themes were of importance in the advocates' claims-making activities in the press: figures that showed the spread of the phenomenon, moralizing criteria in the self-diagnosis tests, establishment of the new term in the press arena and sensational stories. The study also showed that four of the stages in Blumer's model were present during this period.