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Neural representations of dynamical state and trait impulsivity in individuals at risk for internet gaming disorder.

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Τίτλος: Neural representations of dynamical state and trait impulsivity in individuals at risk for internet gaming disorder.
Συγγραφείς: Zhao H; Faculty of Psychology, MOE Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China.; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China., Xiao Z; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China., Li S; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China., Liu J; Faculty of Psychology, MOE Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China. ljl20240108@swu.edu.cn., He Q; Faculty of Psychology, MOE Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality, Southwest University, Chongqing, 400715, China. heqinghua@swu.edu.cn.; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China. heqinghua@swu.edu.cn.
Πηγή: Molecular psychiatry [Mol Psychiatry] 2026 Aug; Vol. 31 (8), pp. 4645-4654. Date of Electronic Publication: 2026 Apr 02.
Τύπος έκδοσης: Journal Article
Γλώσσα: English
Στοιχεία περιοδικού: Publisher: Nature Publishing Group Specialist Journals Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 9607835 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1476-5578 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 13594184 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Mol Psychiatry Subsets: MEDLINE
Imprint Name(s): Publication: 2000- : Houndmills, Basingstoke, UK : Nature Publishing Group Specialist Journals
Original Publication: Houndmills, Hampshire, UK ; New York, NY : Stockton Press, c1996-
Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): Impulsive Behavior*/physiology , Internet Addiction Disorder*/physiopathology , Internet Addiction Disorder*/diagnostic imaging, Magnetic Resonance Imaging/methods ; Brain/physiopathology ; Brain Mapping/methods ; Behavior, Addictive/physiopathology ; Video Games/psychology ; Humans ; Male ; Female ; Young Adult ; Adult ; Adolescent ; Internet
Περίληψη: Impulsivity is a core symptom across multiple addictive disorders, including internet gaming disorder (IGD), yet its multidimensional nature-particularly the neural basis of state and trait impulsivity in IGD-remains poorly understood. We aimed to elucidate the neural correlates of both impulsivity dimensions and uncover how IGD interacts with the heightened impulsive tendencies. Here we conducted a fMRI study with 87 college students at risk for IGD, employing a modified card-guessing task to capture state impulsivity under a loss decision framework. Modified card-guessing paradigm was applied to assess subjects' state-impulsivity via the loss chasing behavior-the tendency to increase wagers to recover previous losses. Trait impulsivity was assessed using the UPPS-P scale. Another independent cohort (n = 84) with similar IGD profiles was further to validate our finding. Behavioral modelling indicated that state impulsivity, manifesting as the loss chasing behavior (i.e., higher wagers under the loss decision framework), dynamically increased as a function of the loss streaks. Neuroimaging analyses identified key brain regions-such as the right middle frontal gyrus, superior frontal gyrus, striatum, and insula-whose activation during loss feedback predicted subsequent impulsive decisions. These neural signatures of state impulsivity successfully distinguished high-risk IGD individuals. Crucially, resting-state functional connectivity (rs-FC) within these regions not only identified IGD risk but also predicted trait impulsivity. Mediation analysis further demonstrated that IGD's influence on trait impulsivity was indirectly mediated by rs-FC patterns linked to state impulsivity. Our findings elucidate the distinct yet interconnected neural representations of state and trait impulsivity in IGD, underscoring the neurobehavioral continuum linking transient impulsive states to enduring impulsive traits in IGD.
(© 2026. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.)
Competing Interests: Competing interests: The authors report no conflicts with any product mentioned or concept discussed in this article. Ethics declarations: All methods were performed in accordance with the relevant guidelines and regulations. The study protocol and all procedures were approved by the local ethics committees of participating centers. For dataset 1, approval was granted by the human research ethics committee of Southwest University (IRB No. H25043). For dataset 2, approval was granted by the human ethics committee of The Ninth People’s Hospital of Chongqing (IRB No. 2019016). All participants provided written informed consent for study participation, data collection, and data sharing in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. No identifiable images from human participants are included in this article, and therefore no separate consent for publication of images was required.
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Grant Information: 31972906 National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China); 32300859 National Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China); 2023NSCQ-MSX0899 Natural Science Foundation of Chongqing (Natural Science Foundation of Chongqing Municipality)
Entry Date(s): Date Created: 20260402 Date Completed: 20260714 Latest Revision: 20260714
Update Code: 20260714
DOI: 10.1038/s41380-026-03589-1
PMID: 41927766
Βάση Δεδομένων: MEDLINE
Περιγραφή
ISSN:1476-5578
DOI:10.1038/s41380-026-03589-1