It doesn't take a scientist to figure out that gamers whose habits border on the realm of addiction are likely to be a little neurotic, introverted, and socially disagreeable. However, it does take a scientist (a pair of them, actually) to survey hundreds of gamers, find the same traits, and then point out that the same characteristics can be found in people with the developmental disorder Asperger syndrome.

Dr. John Charlton of England's University of Bolton and Ian Danforth of Walla Walla, Washington's Whitman College jointly announced their findings at the British Psychological Society's annual conference in Dublin, Ireland, yesterday, saying that the closer gamers were to being addicted to their hobby, the more likely they were to display "negative personality traits." Specifically, the pair spotted increased neuroticism, lack of extraversion, and lack of agreeableness.

"The thinking in the field is that there is a scale along which people, even those considered to be 'normal,' can be placed upon," Charlton said in a statement. "And that people such as engineers, mathematicians, and computer scientists are nearer to the nonempathising, systemising end of the spectrum, with people with Asperger syndrome even further along again. Our research supports the idea that people who are heavily involved in game playing may be nearer to autistic spectrum disorders than people who have no interest in gaming."

The researchers surveyed 391 gamers, 86 percent of whom were male.

Main Entry: As·per·ger's syndrome
Pronunciation: 'äs-"p&r-g&rz-
Variant: also As·per·ger syndrome /-g&r/
Function: noun
: a developmental disorder characterized by impaired social and occupational skills, by normal language and cognitive development, and by restricted, repetitive, and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities often with above average performance in a narrow field against a general background of deficient functioning called also Asperger's disorder