Gaming addiction test (IGDS9-SF): a private 3-minute self-check

The IGDS9-SF (Internet Gaming Disorder Scale–Short-Form) asks nine questions about your gaming over the past 12 months, on any device: phone, tablet, computer or console, online or offline.¹ Each question looks at one warning sign of problem gaming:

• thinking about gaming most of the time;
• feeling irritable, anxious or sad when you try to cut down;
• needing to play for longer to get the same enjoyment;
• not managing to control or stop gaming;
• losing interest in other hobbies;
• carrying on despite problems with other people;
• hiding how much you play from family or others;
• gaming to escape a bad mood;
• risking a relationship, studies, a job or another opportunity because of gaming.

Playing games is a normal part of life for many young people and adults. The World Health Organization (WHO) describes gaming disorder as a pattern of impaired control over gaming, giving it priority over other interests and daily activities, and carrying on despite harm, usually for at least 12 months. Only a small proportion of people who play games develop it.⁴

Each answer scores from 1 (“Never”) to 5 (“Very Often”), so the total runs from 9 to 45. This page uses two published rules, and your answers reach the research cut-off if either one applies:

The result shows which side of the cut-off your answers fall on, rather than a score. Researchers have suggested other cut-offs too, and none has yet been tested in Bangladesh.²

A result below the cut-off means your answers show fewer signs of problem gaming. It does not mean gaming never causes trouble: arguments at home, late nights or slipping marks are still worth taking seriously.

A result at or above the cut-off means your answers show many signs that gaming is affecting your life. It is not a diagnosis. Only a professional assessment can tell whether this is gaming disorder, and whether something else is going on as well.

Heavy gaming often goes together with other difficulties. In a survey of school students in Kurigram, Bangladesh, higher gaming-problem scores were linked with loneliness, bullying, less supervision from parents, a weaker relationship with them, and more time online each day.⁵ Gaming can also become a way to escape worry, sadness or stress, which is why one question asks about moods.

Small, practical changes often help, especially when you plan them together with your family:

• Notice your pattern for a week. Write down when you play, for how long and what made you start.
• Agree on limits together. Decide on gaming times and a stopping time, especially on school and work nights.
• Protect your sleep. Keep phones and consoles out of the bedroom at night, and stop playing well before bedtime.
• Plan offline time. Sport, friends, family meals and hobbies make it easier to play less.
• Find other ways to handle stress. If you play to escape sadness, worry or boredom, talking to someone you trust can help more than another game.
• For parents: stay interested and calm rather than angry. Supervision and a warm relationship with parents are linked with fewer gaming problems.⁵

If cutting down is very hard, talking therapy can help. In research studies, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) reduced gaming-disorder symptoms, at least in the short term.⁶

Talk to a qualified professional — a BMDC-registered psychiatrist (ideally one who works with children and adolescents) or a clinical psychologist — if:

• your result is at or above the research cut-off;
• gaming is harming your sleep, studies, work, health or relationships;
• you have tried to cut down and could not;
• you feel low, anxious or angry much of the time, or very irritable when you cannot play.

If you are under 18, please share this result with a parent, a teacher or another adult you trust. They can help you find support and arrange an appointment. Care is available in private practice and at public hospitals.

The IGDS9-SF was developed by Halley M. Pontes and Mark D. Griffiths and published in 2015. Its nine questions follow the nine criteria for internet gaming disorder in the American Psychiatric Association’s DSM-5.¹ It has since been tested in many languages.²

The Bangla version was adapted and tested by Islam and colleagues in 2022 with 428 school-going adolescent gamers in Dhaka, with an average age of about 16, and showed sound reliability and validity.² The Bangla questions on our Bangla page are copied exactly from that official form, which the developer publishes online. The developer allows anyone to use the scale without asking permission, as long as the original paper is cited.