A study recently submitted to the
Journal of General Psychology determined that Harry Potter can be addictive, with fans of the series experiencing "withdrawal" after the release of
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.
After studying 4,000 Potter fans online, researchers found signs of addiction in 10 percent of the group, using a scale established for smoking in which they replaced cigarettes with
Deathly Hallows. Participants considered "addicts" were those who:
Quote:
… described spending more than four hours a day on Potter-related activities, experiencing interference with appetite and sleep patterns, engaging in less physical activity, having a lower sense of well-being and being more irritable after completing the series.
According to the study's lead researcher, Dr. Jeffrey Rudski, a psychology professor at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania:
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An addiction is an addiction is an addiction. An addiction to a drug is no different than an addiction to Harry Potter or the Internet or pornography. Although it's not always a bad thing. There's a community that you get with Harry Potter that you don't get with heroin.
The study did find, however, that fans who used a creative outlet for their addiction – like fanfic writers and graphic designers – were the least likely to go through withdrawal symptoms that caused disruption in their day-to-day lives.
You can read more about the study
here.