The Effect of Care Based on the Salutogenesis Model

The internet, which is the most indispensable technology of today, appeals to the needs of all age groups, as well as highlighting individuality, being easily accessible almost always, giving a feeling of superiority and achievement, and being able to be played without being tied to a physical location. With its features, it constantly attracts the attention of adolescents and causes them to actively use the internet. Problems associated with high levels of gaming and internet use are increasingly recognized as a potential public health burden across the developed world. Digital game addiction is considered a mental health problem by the World Health Organization (2018) and the American Psychiatric Association, and the fact that adolescence is full of excitement, anxiety and stressors for adolescents makes them an important risk group in digital game addiction. It is seen in international studies that this risk among adolescent individuals is up to 17%. In the study conducted by Ay on 865 adolescents in our country, this rate was found to be 28.8%, which is a remarkable finding. Other studies support these rates and reveal that digital game addiction is high in adolescents. In addition, in a study conducted in our country during the pandemic period, when digital game playing times before the pandemic and during the pandemic were compared; It was determined that this period increased significantly during the pandemic process.

Since adolescence constitutes the bond between childhood and adulthood, the individual in this period where some changes occur in cognitive, physical, psychological and social terms brought about by the transition period; They face many stressors such as family relationships, friendship relationships, characteristics of the developmental period, society's expectations, and anxiety about passing the university exam. Adolescents; It has been reported that in order to cope with these stressors or escape from stress, there may be behavior of escaping from the real world and turning to the virtual world, and it may evolve into addiction as a result of increased gaming behavior due to a sustaining stress factor such as a negative parental attitude. Looking at international and national research, it is seen that adolescents with high stress levels have high levels of digital game addiction.

One of the models based on stress management is the Salutogenesis Model. Antonovsky introduced the sense of cohesion as a salutogenic concept to explain how and why people can cope with stress better. The model argues that the individual's ability to successfully manage many stressors is achieved through the development of a sense of integrity. Sense of integrity; It explains the individual's ability to cope with tension, use internal and external resources to solve his problems in a healthy way, and the individual's general stance towards problems. A low sense of integrity indicates that the person cannot cope with stressful situations and does not use appropriate coping strategies. In this context, it is noteworthy that there are no studies examining the sense of integrity of adolescents who are in a stressful developmental period and aiming to increase the sense of integrity.

The concept of a sense of wholeness as a result of the developmental process during adolescence indicates that the concept is viewed primarily as a result of individual life experiences, learning processes, and environmental influences, rather than as a primary source and determinant of positive health. As they grow and convey positive coping experiences, adolescents develop a general sense of intelligibility and manageability of demands and a sense of meaningfulness about life as it is and overcoming challenges. From this perspective, adolescence is seen as vital life stages that are crucial for the development of a sense of personal harmony and individual health biography.

On the basis of the Salutogenesis Model, this study is based on the development of individuals' internal and external resources for game addictions and strengthening their sense of integrity. It has been determined that digital game addiction and problematic internet use in adolescents form the basis of seven problems. These problems have been identified as mental health, vision, pain, sleep and rest patterns, nutrition, social contact and physical activity. Encouraging behavioral changes regarding internet use and teaching adolescents how to deal with these problems becomes a necessity in today's technology. In the literature, counseling has been provided for families and adolescents to prevent digital game addiction in adolescents. Care based on the salutogenesis model has never been studied in the world, but in Turkey, Uzdil et al. used the model in patient care by adapting it to care. Additionally, studies have suggested designing school-based intervention programs to prevent and reduce digital game addiction. In this context, the aim of the study is to improve coping with stress and eliminate digital game addiction by strengthening the sense of integrity of Care Based on the Salutogenesis Model in Preventing Digital Game Addiction in Adolescents.