Event-related brain response to visual cues in individuals with Internet gaming disorder: relevance to attentional bias and decision-making

Abstract

This study investigated attentional bias toward game-related cues in Internet gaming disorder (IGD) using electrophysiological markers of late positive potential (LPP) and identifying the sources of LPP. In addition, the association between LPP and decision-making ability was investigated. The IGD (n = 40) and healthy control (HC; n = 39) participants viewed a series of game-related and neutral pictures, while their event-related potentials (ERPs) were recorded. LPPs were calculated as the mean amplitudes between 400 and 700 ms at the centro-parietal (CP3, CP1, Cpz, CP2, and CP4) and parietal (P3, P1, Pz, P2, and P4) electrode sites. The source activations of LPP were estimated using standardized low-resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (sLORETA). In addition, decision-making ability was evaluated by the Cambridge Gambling Task. Higher LPP amplitudes were found for game-related cues in the IGD group than in the HC group. sLORETA showed that the IGD group was more active in the superior and middle temporal gyri, which are involved in social perception, than in the HC group, whereas it was less active in the frontal area. Individuals with IGD have deficits in decision-making ability. In addition, in the HC group, the lower the LPP when looking at the game-related stimuli, the better the quality of decision-making, but not in the IGD group. Enhanced LPP amplitudes are associated with emotional arousal to gaming cues and decision-making deficits in IGD. In addition, source activities suggest that patients with IGD perceive game-related cues as social stimuli. LPP can be used as a neurophysiological marker of IGD.

Enhanced resting-state EEG source functional connectivity within the default mode and reward-salience networks in internet gaming disorder

“…Individuals with IGD showed generally lower cognitive function indices, such as full-scale intelligence quotient, verbal comprehension index, processing speed, and working memory scores compared with regular gamers and/or non-gamers (Jang et al, 2021). In an event-related potential study, the IGD group showed a higher late positive potential in response to game-related stimuli and a poor quality of decision-making compared with healthy controls (HCs; Kim et al, 2021). In a resting-state EEG study, enhanced gamma power of those with internet addiction (IA) was associated with their impaired inhibitory control (Choi et al, 2013).…”

Overview on brain function enhancement of Internet addicts through exercise intervention: Based on reward-execution-decision cycle

“…This condition It can make IA patients more sensitive to getting rewards and ignore the adverse effects. IA patients will prefer immediate rewards to delayed but more favorable rewards (35,36). Immediate rewards meet the physical and psychological needs of the patient.…”

Different Educational Interventions on Individual Cognition of Garbage Classification Based on EEG Monitoring

“…Specifically, studies generally explain a specific cognitive process by analyzing the brain states represented by typical components in the ERPs [36]. Among them, the late positive potential (LPP) is generally used to assess attentional conflict caused by external stimulus-driven or subjective goal orientation, and higher LPP amplitudes represent larger cognitive conflicts [37,38]. Crites and Cacioppo (1996) first discovered that this process triggers LPP components when they studied the process of food categorization [39].…”