Gaming Disorder (GD) has been officially recognized as a mental health condition due to addictive behavior by the World Health Organization. Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) is also under preliminary consideration by the American Psychiatric Association as a condition requiring further research. Knowledge concerning psychological factors associated with GD is of great importance for developing effective prevention and treatment programs. Thus, the overarching aim of this thesis was to increase our knowledge concerning GD, specifically how underlying psychological processes such as motivational factors and emotional dysregulation are associated with this condition. The current thesis also aimed to translate and investigate the validity of Swedish gaming motivation and GD symptom measures. This thesis comprises four studies. 

Study I synthesized the existing literature on the relationships between gaming motivations and GD symptoms. The findings demonstrated robust associations between certain gaming motivational factors, such as the desire for emotional escape through video games, and more GD symptoms across studies. Study II examined the psychometric properties of three GD screening tools, including the Gaming Disorder Test (GDT) and the Five-Item Gaming Disorder Test (GDT-5), based on the World Health Organization's framework, and the Ten-Item Internet Gaming Disorder Test (IGDT-10), based on the American Psychiatric Association's framework, in a Swedish-speaking sample. Study III investigated the psychometric properties of the Motives for Online Gaming Questionnaire (MOGQ) and a shortened version, the MOGQ-14, in a Swedish-speaking sample. Studies II and III provided evidence of construct validity for these measures. Study IV investigated the mediating effects of depression symptoms and coping, escapism, and fantasy motivations as a composite factor (CEF motives) on the relationship between emotion dysregulation and GD symptoms. Findings showed that depression symptoms and CEF motives mediate this relationship, suggesting that individuals with higher emotion dysregulation and more depression symptoms may use gaming as an emotion regulation technique, which could contribute to an increased risk of developing GD.

The results of this thesis showed a relationship between GD symptoms, emotional dysregulation, and gaming motivations. Healthcare professionals may consider assessing and addressing emotion dysregulation and gaming motivations during prevention or treatment interventions for GD. Future research may investigate these variables in clinical populations to better understand GD and develop more effective interventions. This thesis also provides validated measures of gaming motivations and symptoms of GD, which may benefit future research, healthcare professionals, and other stakeholders.