The sweet rewards and sudden frustrations of gaming Heart pounding. Chest tightening with excitement. Sweat dripping off your palms onto your keyboard as you “spam” the button – victory just a few clicks away! Suddenly, defeat. All at once, it comes crashing down. The loss stings, as you replay the moment in your mind… could have, should have, would have. All this just for a game? That is gaming rage – an emotional rollercoaster fuelled by the very same psychological triggers that make winning a game feel like ruling the world. Gaming taps into our rewards system, from the euphoric feeling of winning to the crushing, devastating feeling of defeat, therefore rendering it highly addictive, especially for teenagers. You know the feeling when in a game you unlock the next level, find the “loot” and treasure, or win it all? That is gamification – the reward system in gaming which works by releasing the neurotransmitter, dopamine, thereby inducing feelings of pleasure and satisfaction....
Invisible Battles, Real Wounds Trigger Warning It begins with a negative comment. Then a screenshot. Before you know it, everyone has seen it, but nobody says anything, nobody stands up against it. In today’s modern world, it does not take bruises to break someone…. one cruel message, one meme, one “send” – these are the weapons of cyberbullying. Behind the façade of a glowing screen and anonymous usernames, there lies a real human being, shamelessly putting others down. Cyberbullying has exponentiated in proportion with the advancement of technology to become one of the most dangerous and underestimated threats faced by young people. Cyberbullying takes place behind screens, but its effects cut deep into peoples’ real lives too, a risk not only to one’s mental health, but sometimes one’s physical wellbeing as well. Victims of cyberbullying are prone to feeling isolated and detached from the world around them, thereby withdrawing themselves from participation in events with...