Psychiatrists Discover Mass Hysteria Among Indian Gamers

Unusual ideas proved contagious

A recent article titled “Induced Delusional Disorder in the Digital Age: a series of virtual ‘folie à trois’ cases” drew media attention, including coverage by RBC.

Indian psychiatrists have, for the first time, identified a case of shared psychosis among gamers. Their patients were three young men who were deeply engaged in online gaming:

“For three years they spent time together in online games every day, until all of them developed a common persecutory delusion. In particular, the young men came to believe that certain organizations were surveilling them using artificial intelligence (AI) to identify vulnerabilities and predict their behavior and intentions.”

Initially, one man — who became the apparent “source” of these delusional ideas — sought help from psychiatrists. Clinicians then contacted his “companions” and conducted assessments; ultimately all three were diagnosed with folie à trois (from French, “madness of three” or “shared psychosis among three”).

This syndrome occurs when delusional beliefs originating with one individual are transmitted to two others with whom they have a close (emotional) bond.

The men received treatment and, within 2–3 months, showed symptomatic improvement along with partial recovery of lost social connections.

The authors recommend further study into how online communities influence the structure and content of emerging psychopathology. They noted that, in today’s environment, psychological closeness alone may suffice to transmit delusional thinking:

“This series of cases illustrates a novel expression of shared psychotic disorder in the context of digital coexistence, underscoring that psychological — not physical — proximity can be sufficient to transmit delusional convictions in the modern era.”

Source: iXBT.games