Because addictive behaviors typically result from violated homeostasis of the impulsive (amygdala-striatal) and inhibitory (prefrontal cortex) brain systems, this study examined whether these systems sub-serve a specific case of technology-related addiction, namely Facebook "addiction." Using a go/no-go paradigm in functional MRI settings, the study examined how these brain systems in 20 Facebook users (M age = 20.3 yr., SD = 1.3, range = 18-23) who completed a Facebook addiction questionnaire, responded to Facebook and less potent (traffic sign) stimuli. The findings indicated that at least at the examined levels of addiction-like symptoms, technology-related "addictions" share some neural features with substance and gambling addictions, but more importantly they also differ from such addictions in their brain etiology and possibly pathogenesis, as related to abnormal functioning of the inhibitory-control brain system.

This research investigated the cognitive correlates of false memories that are induced by the misinformation paradigm. A large sample of Chinese college students (N0436) participated in a misinformation procedure and also took a battery of cognitive tests. Results revealed sizable and systematic individual differences in false memory arising from exposure to misinformation. False memories were significantly and negatively correlated with measures of intelligence (measured with Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices and Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale), perception (Motor-Free Visual Perception Test, Change Blindness, and Tone Discrimination), memory (Wechsler Memory Scales and 2-back Working Memory tasks), and face judgement (Face Recognition and Facial Expression Recognition). These findings suggest that people with relatively low intelligence and poor perceptual abilities might be more susceptible to the misinformation effect.

a b s t r a c tRisky decision making is a complex process that involves weighing the probabilities of alternative options that can be desirable, undesirable, or neutral. Individuals vary greatly in how they make decisions either under ambiguity and/or under risk. Such individual differences may have genetic bases. Based on previous studies on the genetic basis of decision making, two decision making tasks [i.e., the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT) and Loss Aversion Task (LAT)] were used to test the effect of 5-HTTLPR polymorphism on decision making under ambiguity and under risk in a large Han Chinese sample (572 college students, 312 females). Basic intelligence and memory tests were also included to control for the influence of basic cognitive abilities on decision making. We found that 5-HTTLPR polymorphism significantly influenced performance in both IGT and LAT. After controlling for intelligence and memory abilities, subjects homozygous for s allele had lower IGT scores than l carriers in the first 40 trials of the IGT task. They also exhibited higher loss aversion than l carriers in the LAT task. Moreover, the effects of 5-HTTLPR were stronger for males than for females. These results extend the literature on the important role of emotion in decision making under ambiguity and risk, and shed additional lights on how decision making is influenced by culture as well as sex differences. Combining our results with existing literature, we propose that these effects might be mediated by a neural circuitry that comprises the amygdala, ventromedial prefrontal cortex, and insular cortex. Understanding the genetic factors affecting decision making in healthy subjects may allow us to better identify at-risk individuals, and better target the development of new potential treatments for specific disorders such as schizophrenia, addiction, and depression.

As a relatively recent cultural invention in human evolution, reading is an important gateway to personal development and socioeconomic success. Despite the well documented individual differences in reading ability, its neuroanatomical correlates have not been well understood, largely due to the fact that reading is a complex skill that consists of multiple components. Using a large sample of 416 college students and 7 reading tasks, the present study successfully identified three uncorrelated components of reading ability: phonological decoding, form-sound association, and naming speed. We then tried to predict individuals' scores in these components from their gray matter volume (GMV) on a subset of participants (N ϭ 253) with high-quality structural images, adopting a multivariate support vector regression analysis with tenfold cross-validation. Our results revealed distinct neural regions that supported different aspects of reading ability: whereas phonological decoding was associated with the GMV in the left superior parietal lobe extending to the supramarginal gyrus, form-sound association was predicted by the GMV in the hippocampus and cerebellum. Naming speed was associated with GMV in distributed brain regions in the occipital, temporal, parietal, and frontal cortices. Phonological decoding and form-sound association were uncorrelated with general cognitive abilities. However, naming speed was correlated with intelligence and processing speed, and some of the regions that were predictive of naming speed also predicted these general cognitive abilities. These results provide further insights on the cognitive and neural architecture of reading and the structural basis of individual differences in reading abilities.

This study relies on knowledge regarding the neuroplasticity of dual-system components that govern addiction and excessive behavior and suggests that alterations in the grey matter volumes, i.e., brain morphology, of specific regions of interest are associated with technology-related addictions. Using voxel based morphometry (VBM) applied to structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans of twenty social network site (SNS) users with varying degrees of SNS addiction, we show that SNS addiction is associated with a presumably more efficient impulsive brain system, manifested through reduced grey matter volumes in the amygdala bilaterally (but not with structural differences in the Nucleus Accumbens). In this regard, SNS addiction is similar in terms of brain anatomy alterations to other (substance, gambling etc.) addictions. We also show that in contrast to other addictions in which the anterior-/ mid- cingulate cortex is impaired and fails to support the needed inhibition, which manifests through reduced grey matter volumes, this region is presumed to be healthy in our sample and its grey matter volume is positively correlated with one’s level of SNS addiction. These findings portray an anatomical morphology model of SNS addiction and point to brain morphology similarities and differences between technology addictions and substance and gambling addictions.

Playing Internet games has emerged as a growing in prevalence leisure activity. In some cases, excess gaming can lead to addiction-like symptoms and aversive outcomes that may be seen by some as manifestations of a behavioral addiction. Even though agreement regarding the pathologizing of excessive video gaming is not yet achieved and perhaps because the field requires more research, many works have examined the antecedents and outcomes of what is termed internet gaming disorder (IGD). In this article, we aim at summarizing perspectives and findings related to the neurocognitive processes that may underlie IGD and map such findings onto the triadic-system that governs behavior and decision-making, the deficits in which have been shown to be associated with many addictive disorders. This tripartite system model includes the following three brain systems: (1) the impulsive system, which often mediates fast, automatic, unconscious, and habitual behaviors; (2) the reflective system, which mediates deliberating, planning, predicting future outcomes of selected behaviors, and exerting inhibitory control; and (3) the interoceptive awareness system, which generates a state of craving through the translation of somatic signals into a subjective state of drive. We suggest that IGD formation and maintenance can be associated with (1) a hyperactive “impulsive” system; (2) a hypoactive “reflective” system, as exacerbated by (3) an interoceptive awareness system that potentiates the activity of the impulsive system, and/or hijacks the goal-driven cognitive resources needed for the normal operation of the reflective system. Based on this review, we propose ways to improve the therapy and treatment of IGD and reduce the risk of relapse among recovering IGD populations.

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Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a widely-used tool to induce neuroplasticity and modulate cortical function by applying weak direct current over the scalp. In this review, we first introduce the underlying mechanism of action, the brief history from discovery to clinical scientific research, electrode positioning and montages, and parameter setup of tDCS. Then, we review tDCS application in clinical samples including people with drug addiction, major depression disorder, Alzheimer's disease, as well as in children. This review covers the typical characteristics and the underlying neural mechanisms of tDCS treatment in such studies. This is followed by a discussion of safety, especially when the current intensity is increased or the stimulation duration is prolonged. Given such concerns, we provide detailed suggestions regarding safety procedures for tDCS operation. Lastly, future research directions are discussed. They include foci on the development of multi-tech combination with tDCS such as with TMS and fMRI; long-term behavioral and morphological changes; possible applications in other research domains, and more animal research to deepen the understanding of the biological and physiological mechanisms of tDCS stimulation.