Gaming Disorder as a Buffer Against Juvenile Delinquency in Abused Children: Competing Mediating Roles of Machiavellianism and Psychopathy

Abstract

Child abuse is a very serious and widespread social problem. Recent studies indicate that adverse childhood experiences can significantly contribute to negative outcomes, such as gaming disorder, negative personality traits, and aggressive or deviant tendencies. Consequently, it is natural and logical to assume that these negative outcomes might reinforce each other and lead to more harmful consequences, like crime or juvenile delinquency, forming a “dark spiral.” However, this paper challenges this common perspective. Our investigation provides direct empirical evidence based on a census of 378 adolescents with behavioral issues in all juvenile training schools in Chongqing, China. Our results show that child abuse indeed leads to negative personality traits, such as Psychopathy and Machiavellianism, which, in turn, result in juvenile delinquency. However, we found that gaming disorder mediates the effects of child abuse and psychopathy on juvenile delinquency, with a negative indirect effect. This suggests that gaming disorder may protect children and adolescents from the harmful influences of abuse and negative personality traits. If these youth with delinquent behavior do not play too many video games, they might be more likely to engage in crime. Video games can provide an alternative way for teenagers to experience excitement and a sense of belonging, potentially reducing their desire to seek illegal ways to meet these needs. This partially supports the unstructured leisure time theory.