By Deborah Arthurs
Last updated at 6:08 PM on 14th July 2011
It has long been dismissed as a male hobby; the preserve of computer-obsessed teenage boys and anti-social husbands everywhere.
But according to figures reported this week, there are just as many women playing online computer games as there are men.
What's more, they spend even more time glued to their screens than their male counterparts.
The study, carried out by Doritos, found that while 50 per cent of men readily admit to frequent online gaming, a surprising 49 per cent of women confess that they too are addicted to Internet games.
Virtual reality: A new study shows that almost as many women (49 per cent) are participating in online gaming as men (50 per cent) - with more women surveyed saying they enjoy gaming than those who admitted they enjoy sex
And while men spend 22.3 per cent of their time online playing games, women trump them, whiling away 23.2 per cent of their time online playing games.
Revealingly, the study showed that not only are women just as keen on gaming as men - but that the majority would rather spend time playing on their gadgets than having sex.
Worryingly, one in five even admitted to regularly gaming in bed. And no, that is not a euphemism.
Men may shake their heads despairingly at this - after all, all but the most devoted male computer game enthusiast would down tools for a session in the marital bed - but what is perhaps more staggering is the news that female gamers would rather play online games than go shopping.
Now that really IS an addiction.
Playing up: Women spend more time each week playing computer games than men - but experts say such addiction could harm relationships?
It found that men are drawn to playing games by the element of competition, with more than half saying this is the main appeal, while the majority of women - two thirds - cite stress relief as the reason.
The survey also highlighted the disparity in the types of games played by the two sexes.
Women, it found, are more likely to play games with a social element or that test their brain power, with almost half the women surveyed admitting to be fans of such games compared to just a quarter of men.
So while women download apps, solve problems or exchange bushels of hay on the popular Facebook app Farmville, men, who were found to be far less selective in their gaming habits, are more likely to be shooting up virtual opponents in an online war game (over a third play regularly), or gambling, with one in five admitting to logging on to such sites.
But as this habit grows in popularity among both genders, could addiction to gaming create problems, even if the games played have a social element?
Experts say yes. Relationship experts warn that attachment to such technology could isolate us from our friends and partners, leading to problems.
Stress relief: Two thirds of women say they play games like this one to help relax, while men are drawn to games for the element of competition
Technology may be keeping us in touch with the world, but it?s also isolating us from our partners ? whether it?s a wife who spends hours on Facebook or a husband who can?t be separated from his video games.
And as reports surfaced this week that gaming habits are cited in 15 per cent of divorce cases, with women saying they feel they come second to their partners' computer games, these warnings should not fall on deaf ears.
Facebook, where many of the games women prefer are based, is cited in one in five divorces, according to lawyers, while a survey by website Divorce Online found that the phrase ?mobile phone? occurred in one in eight divorces citing unreasonable behaviour.
Even if a couple share the passion for gaming, there's no doubt that with both parties turning their focus to virtual reality, a real-life bond can be harmed.
?I call it being ?together alone?,? says relationship therapist Douglas Weiss.
?These days, people are on their mobiles at dinner; they spend hours on the computer or watching TV; and they are more connected to their Facebook friends than to the person they promised to love and cherish until death do them part.
?Technology is interrupting our relationships and allowing us to avoid each other. It has become a way of avoiding real relationships and intimacy.'
The survey follows the launch of the Doritos Dip Desperado mobile app and Facebook game. Visit www.facebook.com/doritos to play.
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