Levels of Internet Gaming Associate with Altered Neural Processing of Social Inclusion and Exclusion
Poster No:
1059
Submission Type:
Abstract Submission
Authors:
Benjamin Klugah-Brown1, Hongzhou Wu1, Guanyu Zhou1, Elijah Agoalikum1, Benjamin Becker2, Bharat Biswal3
Institutions:
1University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, 2The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, HK, 3New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, NJ
First Author:
Co-Author(s):
Introduction:
Internet Gaming Disorder(Luo et al. 2022) has been associated with cognitive (Wang et al. 2017) and emotional dysregulation (Ha et al. 2006; Paulus et al. 2018); however, research on specific neural mechanisms underlying altered responses to social stimuli has been scarce. This study examines neural responses to social exclusion (EXC) and inclusion (INC) stimuli in individuals with elevated problematic online gaming (EPOG) and compares them with non-EPOG controls using functional MRI (fMRI).
Methods:
Fifty-nine participants (41 males, 18 females; mean age = 21.11 ± 2.35 years) were classified into EPOG (IGDS9-SF > 21, n = 30) and non-EPOG (IGDS9-SF ≤ 21, n = 29) groups. Participants viewed EXC and INC stimuli during fMRI scanning, allowing for analysis of activation patterns in brain areas related to emotional and cognitive processing. Brain activation patterns were analyzed using General Linear Model (GLM) and β-series functional connectivity (FC) analyses.
Results:
Compared to non-EPOG controls, the EPOG group exhibited significantly reduced activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), left superior temporal gyrus, and right amygdala during social exclusion (EXC) conditions Figure 1A. In contrast, the non-EPOG group showed widespread activations in regions associated with social cognition and emotional regulation, including the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and insula Figure 1B. For the EXC-INC contrast, EPOG individuals demonstrated significantly lower activation in the right amygdala and left superior temporal gyrus, indicating impaired emotional processing and social cognition during emotionally challenging social scenarios (Figure 1C). FC analyses revealed heightened β-series connectivity in the EPOG group between the ACC and the left inferior frontal gyrus, precentral gyrus, and superior frontal gyrus during EXC conditions. These regions are implicated in emotional regulation, cognitive control, and self-referential processing. Positive correlations were observed between gaming severity scores and FC (Figure 2A,B,D) in these regions, suggesting that higher gaming addiction levels are associated with altered neural connectivity patterns that reinforce maladaptive responses to social stimuli.
·T-test results from the GLM analysis, showing β values across groups and conditions
·group comparison of β-series FC and its correlation with gaming severity scores
Conclusions:
EPOG individuals display altered neural processing of social interactions, characterized by hypoactivation in cognitive control and social processing regions, alongside enhanced FC within emotion-related networks. These findings suggest that emotional dysregulation and maladaptive coping strategies may subserve problematic gaming behaviors, offering insights into potential therapeutic targets for IGD.
Disorders of the Nervous System:
Psychiatric (eg. Depression, Anxiety, Schizophrenia) 2
Emotion, Motivation and Social Neuroscience:
Social Cognition
Modeling and Analysis Methods:
Activation (eg. BOLD task-fMRI) 1
Keywords:
Addictions
FUNCTIONAL MRI
1|2Indicates the priority used for review
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Were any human subjects research approved by the relevant Institutional Review Board or ethics panel? NOTE: Any human subjects studies without IRB approval will be automatically rejected.
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Provide references using APA citation style.
Luo, Tao, Dan Wei, Jiangfan Guo, Maorong Hu, Xuelin Chao, Yan Sun, Qian Sun, Shuiyuan Xiao, and Yanhui Liao. 2022. “Diagnostic Contribution of the DSM-5 Criteria for Internet Gaming Disorder.” Frontiers in Psychiatry 12. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.777397.
Paulus, Frank W., Susanne Ohmann, Alexander von Gontard, and Christian Popow. 2018. “Internet Gaming Disorder in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review.” Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology 60(7).
Wang, Yifan, Yanbo Hu, Jiaojing Xu, Hongli Zhou, Xiao Lin, Xiaoxia Du, and Guangheng Dong. 2017. “Dysfunctional Prefrontal Function Is Associated with Impulsivity in People with Internet Gaming Disorder during a Delay Discounting Task.” Frontiers in Psychiatry 8(DEC). doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00287.