INTERNET & VIDEO GAME ADDICTION BRAIN STUDIES

internet addiction

Our current list of Internet addiction brain studies. Without exception, all studies have found addiction-related brain changes in Internet addicts. This review of the literature makes a compelling argument for Internet porn addiction as a sub-type of Internet addiction Neuroscience of Internet Pornography Addiction: A Review and Update (2015). The review also critiques two recent headline-grabbing EEG studies which purport to have “debunked” porn addiction. Also see the Current list of all the Brain Studies on Porn Users, and these reviews of the literature/commentaries on porn & sex addiction:

  1. Cybersex Addiction (2015)
  2. Sex Addiction as a Disease: Evidence for Assessment, Diagnosis, and Response to Critics (2015)
  3. Is Internet Pornography Causing Sexual Dysfunctions? A Review with Clinical Reports (2016)
  4. Should Compulsive Sexual Behavior be Considered an Addiction? (2016)
  5. Compulsive Sexual Behaviour as a Behavioural Addiction: The Impact of the Internet and Other Issues (2016)
  6. Neurobiological Basis of Hypersexuality (2016)
  7. Searching for clarity in muddy water: future considerations for classifying compulsive sexual behavior as an addiction (2016)
  8. Is Internet Pornography Causing Sexual Dysfunctions? A Review with Clinical Reports (2016)
  9. Sexual Addiction chapter from Neurobiology of Addictions, Oxford Press (2016)
  10. Integrating psychological and neurobiological considerations regarding the development and maintenance of specific Internet-use disorders: An Interaction of Person-Affect-Cognition-Execution model (2016)
  11. Neuroscientific Approaches to Online Pornography Addiction (2017)
  12. Is excessive sexual behaviour an addictive disorder? (2017)
  13. Promoting educational, classification, treatment, and policy initiatives Commentary on: Compulsive sexual behaviour disorder in the ICD-11 (Kraus et al., 2018)
  14. The Proof of the Pudding Is in the Tasting: Data Are Needed to Test Models and Hypotheses Related to Compulsive Sexual Behaviors (2018)
  15. Compulsive Sexual Behavior in Humans and Preclinical Models (2018)
  16. Sexual Dysfunctions in the Internet Era (2018)
  17. Neurocognitive mechanisms in compulsive sexual behavior disorder (2018)
  18. A Current Understanding of the Behavioral Neuroscience of Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder and Problematic Pornography Use (2018) 
  19. Ventral Striatal Reactivity in Compulsive Sexual Behaviors (2018)
  20. Online Porn Addiction: What We Know and What We Don’t—A Systematic Review (2019)
  21. Occurrence and development of online porn addiction: individual susceptibility factors, strengthening mechanisms and neural mechanisms (2019)
  22. Theories, prevention, and treatment of pornography-use disorder (2019)
  23. Self-perceived Problematic Pornography Use: An Integrative Model from a Research Domain Criteria and Ecological Perspective (2019)

First Section: Internet Addiction Brain Studies:

  1. Influence of excessive internet use on auditory event-related potential (2008)
  2. Decision-making and prepotent response inhibition functions in excessive internet users (2009)
  3. Gray Matter Abnormalities In Internet Addiction: A Voxel-Based Morphometry Study (2009)
  4. Effect of excessive Internet use on the time–frequency characteristic of EEG (2009)
  5. An event-related potential investigation of deficient inhibitory control in individuals with pathological Internet use (2010)
  6. Impulse inhibition in people with Internet addiction disorder: electrophysiological evidence from a Go/NoGo study (2010)
  7. Differentiation of Internet addiction risk level based on autonomic nervous responses: the Internet-addiction hypothesis of autonomic activity (2010)
  8. Increased regional homogeneity in internet addiction disorder a resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging study (2010)
  9. The research of event-related potentials in working memory of the juvenile internet addiction (2010)
  10. Reduced Striatal Dopamine D2 Receptors in People With Internet Addiction (2011)
  11. Microstructure Abnormalities in Adolescents with Internet Addiction Disorder. (2011)
  12. Preliminary study of Internet addiction and cognitive function in adolescents based on IQ tests (2011)
  13. P300 change and cognitive behavioral therapy in subjects with Internet addiction disorder: A 3 month follow-up study (2011)
  14. Male Internet addicts show impaired executive control ability evidence from a color-word: Stroop task (2011)
  15. Deficits in Early-Stage Face Perception in Excessive Internet Users (2011)
  16. Pornographic Picture Processing Interferes with Working Memory Performance (2012)
  17. Effects of electroacupuncture combined psycho-intervention on cognitive function and event related potentials P300 and mismatch negativity in patients with internet addiction (2012)
  18. Abnormal White Matter Integrity in Adolescents with Internet Addiction Disorder: A Tract-Based Spatial Statistics Study (2012)
  19. Reduced Striatal Dopamine Transporters in People with Internet Addiction Disorder (2012)
  20. Abnormal brain activation of adolescent internet addict in a ball-throwing animation task: Possible neural correlates of disembodiment revealed by fMRI (2012)
  21. Impaired inhibitory control in internet addiction disorder: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study. (2012)
  22. Comparison of Psychological Symptoms and Serum Levels of Neurotransmitters in Shanghai Adolescents with and without Internet Addiction Disorder: A Case-Control Study (2013)
  23. Resting-state beta and gamma activity in Internet addiction (2013)
  24. Electroencephalographic (EEG) brainmap patterns in a clinical sample of adults diagnosed with an internet addiction (2013)
  25. Impaired Error-Monitoring Function in People with Internet Addiction Disorder: An Event-Related fMRI Study (2013).
  26. Effects of Internet Addiction on Heart Rate Variability in School-Aged Children (2013)
  27. An Error-Related Negativity Potential Investigation of Response Monitoring Function in Individuals with Internet Addiction Disorder (2013)
  28. Decreased frontal lobe function in people with Internet addiction disorder (2013)
  29. Differential resting-state EEG patterns associated with comorbid depression in Internet addiction (2014)
  30. Brains online: structural and functional correlates of habitual Internet use (2014)
  31. Impaired frontal-Basal Ganglia connectivity in adolescents with internet addiction (2014)
  32. Prefrontal Control and Internet Addiction A Theoretical Model and Review of Neuropsychological and Neuroimaging Findings (2014)
  33. Neural responses to various rewards and feedback in the brains of adolescent Internet addicts detected by functional magnetic resonance imaging (2014)
  34. Internet addictive individuals share impulsivity and executive dysfunction with alcohol-dependent patients (2014)
  35. Disrupted Brain Functional Network in Internet Addiction Disorder: A Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study (2014)
  36. Higher Media Multi-Tasking Activity Is Associated with Smaller Gray-Matter Density in the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (2014)
  37. Blunted feedback processing during risk-taking in adolescents with features of problematic Internet use (2015)
  38. Brain structures and functional connectivity associated with individual differences in Internet tendency in healthy young adults (2015)
  39. Examination of neural systems sub-serving facebook “addiction” (2014)
  40. A Short Summary of Neuroscientific Findings on Internet Addictio (2015) PDF
  41. New developments on the neurobiological and pharmaco-genetic mechanisms underlying internet and videogame addiction (2015)
  42. Electroencephalogram Feature Detection and Classification in People with Internet Addiction Disorder with Visual Oddball Paradigm (2015)
  43. Molecular and Functional Imaging of Internet Addiction (2015)
  44. Aberrant corticostriatal functional circuits in adolescents with Internet addiction disorder (2015).
  45. How Has the Internet Reshaped Human Cognition? (2015)
  46. Problematic Internet Usage and Immune Function (2015)
  47. Neural substrates of risky decision making in individuals with Internet addiction (2015)
  48. Relationship between peripheral blood dopamine level and internet addiction disorder in adolescents: a pilot study (2015)
  49. Problematic internet use is associated with structural alterations in the brain reward system in females. (2015)
  50. Working memory, executive function and impulsivity in Internet-addictive disorders: a comparison with pathological gambling (2015)
  51. Disrupted inter-hemispheric functional and structural coupling in Internet addiction adolescents (2015)
  52. Electrophysiological studies in internet addiction: A review within the dual-process framework (2015)
  53. Biological basis of problematic internet use (PIN) and therapeutic implications (2015)
  54. Impaired inhibition and working memory in response to internet-related words among adolescents with internet addiction: A comparison with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (2016)
  55. Deficit in rewarding mechanisms and prefrontal left/right cortical effect in vulnerability for internet addiction (2016)
  56. Functional magnetic resonance imaging of internet addiction in young adults (2016)
  57. Problematic Internet Users Show Impaired Inhibitory Control and Risk Taking with Losses: Evidence from Stop Signal and Mixed Gambles Tasks (2016)
  58. Altered Gray Matter Volume and White Matter Integrity in College Students with Mobile Phone Dependence (2016)
  59. Cue-induced craving for Internet among Internet addicts (2016)
  60. Functional changes in patients with internet addiction disclosed by adenosine stressed cerebral blood flow perfusion imaging 99mTc-ECD SPET (2016)
  61. Respiratory sinus arrhythmia reactivity of internet addiction abusers in negative and positive emotional states using film clips stimulation (2016)
  62. Neurobiological findings related to Internet use disorders (2016)
  63. Texting Dependence, iPod Dependence, and Delay Discounting (2016)
  64. Physiological markers of biased decision-making in problematic Internet users (2016)
  65. The dysfunction of face processing in patients with internet addiction disorders: an event-related potential study (2016)
  66. Internet use: Molecular influences of a functional variant on the OXTR gene, the motivation behind using the Internet, and cross-cultural specifics (2016)
  67. A Two-Stage Channel Selection Model for Classifying EEG Activities of Young Adults with Internet Addiction (2016)
  68. An Affective Neuroscience Framework for the Molecular Study of Internet Addiction (2016)
  69. Brain oscillations, inhibitory control mechanisms and rewarding bias in internet addiction (2016)
  70. Electrophysiological studies in Internet addiction: A review within the dual-process framework (2017)
  71. Altered default mode, fronto-parietal and salience networks in adolescents with Internet addiction (2017)
  72. The role of emotional inhibitory control in specific internet addiction – an fMRI study (2017)
  73. Neural correlate of Internet use in patients undergoing psychological treatment for Internet addiction (2017)
  74. Brain anatomy alterations associated with Social Networking Site addiction (2017)
  75. Effect of electro-acupuncture combined with psychological intervention on mental symptoms and P50 of auditory evoked potential in patients with internet addiction disorder (2017)
  76. Time Is Money: The Decision Making of Smartphone High Users in Gain and Loss Intertemporal Choice (2017)
  77. The cognitive dysregulation of Internet addiction and its neurobiological correlates (2017)
  78. Facebook usage on smartphones and gray matter volume of the nucleus accumbens (2017)
  79. Deficits in recognizing disgust facial expressions and Internet addiction: Perceived stress as a mediator (2017)
  80. Spontaneous Hedonic Reactions to Social Media Cues (2017)
  81. Differential physiological changes following internet exposure in higher and lower problematic internet users (2017)
  82. Differences in Resting-state Quantitative Electroencephalography Patterns in Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder with or without Comorbid Symptoms (2017)
  83. Abnormal Reward and Punishment Sensitivity Associated with Internet Addicts (2017)
  84. Evidences from Rewarding System, FRN and P300 Effect in Internet-Addiction in Young People (2017)
  85. Web addiction in the brain: Cortical oscillations, autonomic activity, and behavioral measures (2017)
  86. Extracting the Values of Resting-state Functional Connectivity that Correlate with a Tendency of Internet Addiction (2017)
  87. Association between physiological oscillations in self-esteem, narcissism and internet addiction: A cross-sectional study (2017)
  88. The impact of Internet Dependence on College Student’s attention networks (2017)
  89. Electro-acupuncture treatment for internet addiction: Evidence of normalization of impulse control disorder in adolescents (2017)
  90. Cue-induced craving in Internet-communication disorder using visual and auditory cues in a cue-reactivity paradigm (2017)
  91. Impaired Empathy Processing in Individuals with Internet Addiction Disorder: An Event-Related Potential Study (2017)
  92. Structural Brain Network Abnormalities In Subjects With Internet Addiction (2017)
  93. Relationship between Internet Addiction with Physical Fitness, Hemoglobin Levels and Leukocyte Levels to Students (2017)
  94. An Analysis of Smartphone Overuse Recognition in Terms of Emotions using Brainwaves and Deep Learning (2017)
  95. Internet Addiction Creates Imbalance in the Brain (2017)
  96. WIRED: The impact of media and technology use on stress (cortisol) and inflammation (interleukin IL-6) in fast paced families (2018)
  97. Information and Communications Technologies (ICT): Problematic use of Internet, video games, mobile phones, instant messaging and social networks using MULTICAGE-TIC (2018)
  98. Autonomic stress reactivity and craving in individuals with problematic Internet use (2018)
  99. Influence of internet addiction on executive function and learning attention in Taiwanese school-aged children (2018)
  100. Internet Communication Disorder and the structure of the human brain: initial insights on WeChat addiction (2018)
  101. Pavlovian-to-instrumental transfer: A new paradigm to assess pathological mechanisms with regard to the use of Internet applications (2018)
  102. Cue-reactivity in behavioral addictions: A meta-analysis and methodological considerations (2018)
  103. Automatic detection advantage of network information among Internet addicts: behavioral and ERP evidence (2018)
  104. Gaming-addicted teens identify more with their cyber-self than their own self: Neural evidence (2018)
  105. Impaired orienting in youth with Internet Addiction: Evidence from the Attention Network Task (2018).
  106. Electrophysiological activity is associated with vulnerability of Internet addiction in non-clinical population (2018)
  107. Interference with Processing Negative Stimuli in Problematic Internet Users: Preliminary Evidence from an Emotional Stroop Task (2018)
  108. Does “forced abstinence” from gaming lead to pornography use? Insight from the April 2018 crash of Fortnite’s servers (2018)
  109. Stop Pushing Me Away: Relative Level of Facebook Addiction Is Associated With Implicit Approach Motivation for Facebook Stimuli (2018)
  110. Sex difference in the effect of Internet gaming disorder on the brain functions: Evidence from resting-state fMRI (2018)
  111. Transforming brain signals related to value evaluation and self-control into behavioral choices (2018)
  112. Excessive social media users demonstrate impaired decision making in the Iowa Gambling Task (2019)
  113. Internet addiction associated with right pars opercularis in females (2019)
  114. Escaping reality through videogames is linked to an implicit preference for virtual over real-life stimuli (2019)
  115. Random topology organization and decreased visual processing of internet addiction: Evidence from a minimum spanning tree analysis (2019)
  116. Differentiation between young adult Internet addicts, smokers, and healthy controls by the interaction between impulsivity and temporal lobe thickness (2019)
  117. Bio-psychosocial factors of children and adolescents with internet gaming disorder: a systematic review (2019)
  118. Altered topological connectivity of internet addiction in resting-state EEG through network analysis (2019)
  119. Bad Choices Make Good Stories: The Impaired Decision-Making Process and Skin Conductance Response in Subjects With Smartphone Addiction (2019)
  120. Measuring facets of reward sensitivity, inhibition, and impulse control in individuals with problematic Internet use (2019)
  121. Problematic internet use: an exploration of associations between cognition and COMT rs4818, rs4680 haplotypes (2019)
  122. Altered Plasma Levels of Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in Patients with Internet Gaming Disorder: A Case-Control, Pilot Study (2019)
  123. Microstructural changes and internet addiction behaviour: A preliminary diffusion MRI study (2019)
  124. Corrigendum: Bad Choices Make Good Stories: The Impaired Decision-Making Process and Skin Conductance Response in Subjects With Smartphone Addiction (2019).
  125. Cognitive mechanism of intimate interpersonal relationships and loneliness in internet-addicts: An ERP study (2019)
  126. Automatic detection advantage of problematic Internet users for Wi-Fi signal cues and the moderating effect of negative affect: An event-related potential study (2019)
  127. Prolonged Bedtime Smartphone Use is Associated With Altered Resting-State Functional Connectivity of the Insula in Adult Smartphone Users (2019)
  128. Lateral orbitofrontal gray matter abnormalities in subjects with problematic smartphone use (2019)
  129. Internet addiction and functional brain networks: task-related fMRI study (2019)
  130. Attentional bias in Internet users with problematic use of social networking sites (2019)
  131. Neurophysiological and clinico-biological features of internet addiction (2019)
  132. The utility of combining respiratory sinus arrhythmia indices in association with internet addiction (2020)
  133. Structural and functional correlates of smartphone addiction (2020)
  134. Changes of Neurotransmitters in Youth With Internet and Smartphone Addiction: A Comparison With Healthy Controls and Changes After Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (2020)

Second Section: Video Game Addiction Brain Studies:

  1. Evidence for striatal dopamine release during a video game (1998)
  2. Dopamine genes and reward dependence in adolescents with excessive internet video game play (2007)
  3. Specific cue reactivity on computer game related cues in excessive gamers (2007)
  4. Brain activities associated with gaming urge of online gaming addiction (2008).
  5. The effect of excessive internet use on N400 event-related potentials (2008)
  6. The effect of methylphenidate on Internet video game play in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (2009)
  7. Computer and video game addiction-a comparison between game users and non-game users (2010)
  8. Bupropion sustained release treatment decreases craving for video games and cue-induced brain activity in patients with Internet video game addiction (2010)
  9. Altered regional cerebral glucose metabolism in internet game overusers: a 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography study (2010)
  10. Changes in Cue Induced Prefrontal Cortex Activity with Video Game Play. (2010)
  11. Brain correlates of craving for online gaming under cue exposure in subjects with Internet gaming addiction and in remitted subjects. (2011)
  12. Cue induced positive motivational implicit response in young adults with internet gaming addiction (2011)
  13. Enhanced Reward Sensitivity and Decreased Loss Sensitivity in Internet Addicts: An fMRI Study During a Guessing Task (2011)
  14. Brain activity and desire for Internet video game play (2011)
  15. Excessive Internet gaming and decision making: Do excessive World of Warcraft players have problems in decision making under risky conditions? (2011)
  16. The neural basis of video gaming (2011)
  17. Influence of dopaminergic system on internet addiction (2011)
  18. The effect of family therapy on the changes in the severity of on-line game play and brain activity in adolescents with on-line game addiction (2012)
  19. Attentional bias and disinhibition toward gaming cues are related to problem gaming in male adolescents. (2012)
  20. Alterations in regional homogeneity of resting state brain activity in internet gaming addicts. (2012)
  21. Error processing and response inhibition in excessive computer game players: an event-related potential study (2012)
  22. The brain activations for both cue-induced gaming urge and smoking craving among subjects comorbid with Internet gaming addiction and nicotine dependence. (2012)
  23. Brain fMRI study of crave induced by cue pictures in online game addicts (male adolescents) (2012)
  24. Differential regional gray matter volumes in patients with on-line game addiction and professional gamers (2012)
  25. Diffusion tensor imaging reveals thalamus and posterior cingulate cortex abnormalities in internet gaming addicts (2012).
  26. A voxel based morphometric analysis of brain gray matter in online game addicts (2012)
  27. Cognitive biases toward Internet game-related pictures and executive deficits in individuals with an Internet game addiction (2012)
  28. Cortical Thickness Abnormalities in Late Adolescence with Online Gaming Addiction (2013)
  29. Cue reactivity and its inhibition in pathological computer game players (2013)
  30. Decreased functional brain connectivity in adolescents with internet addiction (2013)
  31. Gray matter and white matter abnormalities in online game addiction (2013).
  32. Cognitive flexibility in internet addicts: fMRI evidence from difficult-to-easy and easy-to-difficult switching situations (2013)
  33. Altered default network resting-state functional connectivity in adolescents with internet gaming addiction (2013)
  34. Reduced orbitofrontal cortical thickness in male adolescents with internet addiction (2013)
  35. Reward/punishment sensitivities among internet addicts: Implications for their addictive behaviors (2013).
  36. Amplitude of low frequency fluctuation abnormalities in adolescents with online gaming addiction (2013)
  37. Just watching the game ain’t enough: striatal fMRI reward responses to successes and failures in a video game during active and vicarious playing (2013)
  38. What makes Internet addicts continue playing online even when faced by severe negative consequences? Possible explanations from an fMRI study (2013)
  39. Voxel-level comparison of arterial spin-labeled perfusion magnetic resonance imaging in adolescents with internet gaming addiction (2013).
  40. Brain activation for response inhibition under gaming cue distraction in internet gaming disorder (2013)
  41. Internet gaming addiction: current perspectives (2013)
  42. Altered brain activation during response inhibition and error processing in subjects with Internet gaming disorder: a functional magnetic imaging study (2014)
  43. The prefrontal dysfunction in individuals with Internet gaming disorder: a meta-analysis of functional magnetic resonance imaging studies (2014)
  44. Trait impulsivity and impaired prefrontal impulse inhibition function in adolescents with internet gaming addiction revealed by a Go/No-Go fMRI study (2014)
  45. PET imaging reveals brain functional changes in internet gaming disorder (2014)
  46. Brain correlates of response inhibition in Internet gaming disorder (2014)
  47. Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in on-line game addiction (2014)
  48. Physiological arousal deficits in addicted gamers differ based on preferred game genre (2014)
  49. Neurophysiological and neuroimaging aspects between internet gaming disorder and alcohol use disorder (2014)
  50. Virtual reality therapy for internet gaming disorder (2014)
  51. Abnormal gray matter and white matter volume in ‘Internet gaming addicts’ (2014)
  52. Altered cingulate-hippocampal synchrony correlate with aggression in adolescents with internet gaming disorder (2014)
  53. Impaired risk evaluation in people with Internet gaming disorder: fMRI evidence from a probability discounting task (2014)
  54. Reduced fiber integrity and cognitive control in adolescents with internet gaming disorder (2014)
  55. Assessment of in vivo microstructure alterations in gray matter using DKI in internet gaming addiction (2014)
  56. EEG and ERP based Degree of Internet Game Addiction Analysis (2014)
  57. Decreased functional connectivity in an executive control network is related to impaired executive function in Internet gaming disorder (2014)
  58. Different resting-state functional connectivity alterations in smokers and nonsmokers with internet gaming addiction (2014)
  59. A selective involvement of putamen functional connectivity in youth with internet gaming disorder (2014)
  60. Similarities and differences among Internet gaming disorder, gambling disorder and alcohol use disorder: A focus on impulsivity and compulsivity (2014)
  61. Differences in functional connectivity between alcohol dependence and internet gaming disorder (2015)
  62. Core brain networks interactions and cognitive control in internet gaming disorder individuals in late adolescence/early adulthood (2015)
  63. Altered gray matter density and disrupted functional connectivity of the amygdala in adults with Internet gaming disorder (2015)
  64. Resting-state regional homogeneity as a biological marker for patients with Internet gaming disorder: A comparison with patients with alcohol use disorder and healthy controls (2015)
  65. Altered reward processing in pathological computer gamers: ERP-results from a semi-natural Gaming-Design (2015)
  66. Striatum morphometry is associated with cognitive control deficits and symptom severity in internet gaming disorder (2015)
  67. Video game training and the reward system (2015)
  68. Decreased Prefrontal Lobe Interhemispheric Functional Connectivity in Adolescents with Internet Gaming Disorder: A Primary Study Using Resting-State fMRI (2015)
  69. Functional characteristics of the brain in college students with internet gaming disorder (2015)
  70. The alteration of gray matter volume and cognitive control in adolescents with internet gaming disorder (2015)
  71. An fMRI study of cognitive control in problem gamers (2015)
  72. Altered resting-state functional connectivity of the insula in young adults with Internet gaming disorder (2015)
  73. Imbalanced functional link between executive control network and reward network explain the online-game seeking behaviors in Internet gaming disorder (2015)
  74. Is the Internet gaming-addicted brain close to be in a pathological state? (2015)
  75. Altered Cardiorespiratory Coupling in Young Male Adults with Excessive Online Gaming (2015)
  76. Altered Brain Reactivity to Game Cues After Gaming Experience (2015)
  77. The Effects of Video Games on Cognition and Brain Structure: Potential Implications for Neuropsychiatric Disorders (2015)
  78. Dysfunction of the frontolimbic region during swear word processing in young adolescents with Internet gaming disorder (2015)
  79. Abnormal prefrontal cortex resting state functional connectivity and severity of internet gaming disorder (2015)
  80. Neurophysiological features of Internet gaming disorder and alcohol use disorder: a resting-state EEG study (2015)
  81. Game addiction (2015)
  82. Decreased functional connectivity between ventral tegmental area and nucleus accumbens in Internet gaming disorder: evidence from resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (2015)
  83. Compromised Prefrontal Cognitive Control Over Emotional Interference in Adolescents with Internet Gaming Disorder (2015)
  84. Frequency-dependent changes in the amplitude of low-frequency fluctuations in internet gaming disorder (2015)
  85. The inhibition of proactive interference among adults with Internet gaming disorder (2015)
  86. Decreased modulation by the risk level on the brain activation during decision making in adolescents with internet gaming disorder (2015)
  87. Neurobiological correlates of internet gaming disorder: Similarities to pathological gambling (2015)
  88. Brain connectivity and psychiatric comorbidity in adolescents with Internet gaming disorder (2015)
  89. Testing the Predictive Validity and Construct of Pathological Video Game Use (2015)
  90. Impact of videogame play on the brain’s microstructural properties: cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses (2016)
  91. Activation of the ventral and dorsal striatum during cue reactivity in Internet gaming disorder (2016)
  92. Brain connectivity and psychiatric comorbidity in adolescents with Internet gaming disorder (2016)
  93. Frontostriatal circuits, resting state functional connectivity and cognitive control in internet gaming disorder (2016)
  94. Dysfunctional information processing during an auditory event-related potential task in individuals with Internet gaming disorder (2016)
  95. Resting-State Peripheral Catecholamine and Anxiety Levels in Korean Male Adolescents with Internet Game Addiction (2016)
  96. Network-Based Analysis Reveals Functional Connectivity Related to Internet Addiction Tendency (2016)
  97. Altered Functional Connectivity of the Insula and Nucleus Accumbens in Internet Gaming Disorder: A Resting State fMRI Study (2016)
  98. Violence-related content in video game may lead to functional connectivity changes in brain networks as revealed by fMRI-ICA in young men (2016)
  99. Attentional bias in excessive Internet gamers: Experimental investigations using an addiction Stroop and a visual probe (2016)
  100. Decreased functional connectivity of insula-based network in young adults with internet gaming disorder (2016)
  101. Dysfunctional default mode network and executive control network in people with Internet gaming disorder: Independent component analysis under a probability discounting task (2016)
  102. Impaired anterior insular activation during risky decision making in young adults with internet gaming disorder (2016)
  103. Altered Structural Correlates of Impulsivity in Adolescents with Internet Gaming Disorder (2016)
  104. Dysfunctional information processing during an auditory event-related potential task in individuals with Internetgamingdisorder (2016)
  105. Functional characteristics of the brain in college students with internet gaming disorder (2016)
  106. Brain Activity toward Gaming-Related Cues in Internet Gaming Disorder during an Addiction Stroop Task (2016)
  107. Cue-induced Behavioral and Neural Changes among Excessive Internet Gamers and Possible Application of Cue Exposure Therapy to Internet Gaming Disorder (2016)
  108. Neurochemical correlates of internet game play in adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: A proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) study (2016)
  109. Altered resting-state neural activity and changes following a craving behavioral intervention for Internet gaming disorder (2016)
  110. Exploring the Neural Basis of Avatar Identification in Pathological Internet Gamers and of Self-Reflection in Pathological Social Network Users (2016)
  111. Altered brain functional networks in people with Internet gaming disorder: Evidence from resting-state fMRI (2016)
  112. A comparative study of the effects of bupropion and escitalopram on Internet gaming disorder (2016)
  113. Impaired executive control and reward circuit in Internet gaming addicts under a delay discounting task: independent component analysis (2016)
  114. Effects of craving behavioral intervention on neural substrates of cue-induced craving in Internet gaming disorder (2016)
  115. The topological organization of white matter network in internet gaming disorder individuals (2016)
  116. Altered Autonomic Functions and Distressed Personality Traits in Male Adolescents with Internet Gaming Addiction (2016)
  117. Effects of outcome on the covariance between risk level and brain activity in adolescents with internet gaming disorder (2016)
  118. Changes of quality of life and cognitive function in individuals with Internet gaming disorder: A 6-month follow-up (2016)
  119. Compensatory increase of functional connectivity density in adolescents with internet gaming disorder (2016)
  120. Heart rate variability of internet gaming disorder addicts in emotional states (2016)
  121. Delay discounting, risk-taking, and rejection sensitivity among individuals with Internet and Video Gaming Disorders (2016)
  122. Delay Discounting of Video Game Players: Comparison of Time Duration Among Gamers (2017)
  123. Stress vulnerability in male youth with Internet Gaming Disorder (2017)
  124. Neurophysiological correlates of altered response inhibition in internet gaming disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder: Perspectives from impulsivity and compulsivity (2017)
  125. Gaming increases craving to gaming-related stimuli in individuals with Internet gaming disorder (2017)
  126. Altered functional connectivity in default mode network in Internet gaming disorder: Influence of childhood ADHD (2017)
  127. Individual differences in implicit learning abilities and impulsive behavior in the context of Internet addiction and Internet Gaming Disorder under the consideration of gender (2017)
  128. New developments in brain research of internet and gaming disorder (2017)
  129. Associations between prospective symptom changes and slow-wave activity in patients with Internet gaming disorder: A resting-state EEG study (2017)
  130. Response Inhibition and Internet Gaming Disorder: A Meta-analysis (2017)
  131. Dissociable neural processes during risky decision-making in individuals with Internet-gaming disorder (2017)
  132. The correlation between mood states and functional connectivity within the default mode network can differentiate Internet gaming disorder from healthy controls (2017)
  133. Neural connectivity in Internet gaming disorder and alcohol use disorder: A resting-state EEG coherence study (2017)
  134. Structural alterations in the prefrontal cortex mediate the relationship between Internet gaming disorder and depressed mood (2017)
  135. Exploratory metabolomics of biomarker identification for the internet gaming disorder in young Korean males (2017)
  136. Cognitive control and reward loss processing in Internet gaming disorder: Results from a comparison with recreational Internet game-users (2017)
  137. Comparison of Electroencephalography (EEG) Coherence between Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) without Comorbidity and MDD Comorbid with Internet Gaming Disorder (2017)
  138. The adaptive decision-making, risky decision, and decision-making style of Internet gaming disorder (2017)
  139. Unconscious Processing of Facial Expressions in Individuals with Internet Gaming Disorder (2017).
  140. Altered hippocampal volume and functional connectivity in males with Internet gaming disorder comparing to those with alcohol use disorder (2017)
  141. Altered coupling of default-mode, executive-control and salience networks in Internet gaming disorder (2017)
  142. Difference in the functional connectivity of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex between smokers with nicotine dependence and individuals with internet gaming disorder (2017)
  143. Altered Brain Activities Associated with Craving and Cue Reactivity in People with Internet Gaming Disorder: Evidence from the Comparison with Recreational Internet Game Users (2017)
  144. Impact of video games on plasticity of the hippocampus (2017)
  145. Differential neurophysiological correlates of information processing in Internet gaming disorder and alcohol use disorder measured by event-related potentials (2017)
  146. Video Game Addiction in Emerging Adulthood: Cross-Sectional Evidence of Pathology in Video Game Addicts as Compared to Matched Healthy Controls (2017)
  147. Diffusion tensor imaging of the structural integrity of white matter correlates with impulsivity in adolescents with internet gaming disorder (2017)
  148. An Overview of Structural Characteristics in Problematic Video Game Playing (2017)
  149. Group independent component analysis reveals alternation of right executive control network in Internet gaming disorder (2017)
  150. Sustained dysfunctional information processing in patients with Internet gaming disorder: 6-month follow-up ERP study (2017)
  151. Abnormal gray matter volume and impulsivity in young adults with Internet gaming disorder (2017)
  152. An Update Overview on Brain Imaging Studies of Internet Gaming Disorder (2017)
  153. Comparison of brain connectivity between Internet gambling disorder and Internet gaming disorder: A preliminary study (2017)
  154. Impulsivity and compulsivity in Internet gaming disorder: A comparison with obsessive-compulsive disorder and alcohol use disorder (2017)
  155. Impaired Feedback Processing for Symbolic Reward in Individuals with Internet Game Overuse (2017)
  156. Orbitofrontal gray matter deficits as marker of Internet gaming disorder: converging evidence from a cross-sectional and prospective longitudinal design (2017)
  157. Comparing the Effects of Bupropion and Escitalopram on Excessive Internet Game Play in Patients with Major Depressive Disorder (2017)
  158. Functional and structural neural alterations in Internet gaming disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis (2017)
  159. Is Neural Processing of Negative Stimuli Altered in Addiction Independent of Drug Effects? Findings from Drug-Naïve Youth with Internet Gaming Disorder (2017)
  160. Dysfunctional Prefrontal Function Is Associated with Impulsivity in People with Internet Gaming Disorder during a Delay Discounting Task (2017)
  161. A Tripartite Neurocognitive Model of Internet Gaming Disorder (2017)
  162. Acute effects of video-game playing versus television viewing on stress markers and food intake in overweight and obese young men: A randomised controlled trial (2018)
  163. Detection of Craving for Gaming in Adolescents with Internet Gaming Disorder Using Multimodal Biosignals (2018)
  164. Cognitive distortions and gambling near-misses in Internet Gaming Disorder: A preliminary study (2018)
  165. Alterations of Resting-State Static and Dynamic Functional Connectivity of the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex in Subjects with Internet Gaming Disorder (2018)
  166. Gray matter differences in the anterior cingulate and orbitofrontal cortex of young adults with Internet gaming disorder: Surface-based morphometry (2018)
  167. Brain Structures Associated with Internet Addiction Tendency in Adolescent Online Game Players (2018)
  168. Circulating MicroRNA Expression Levels Associated With Internet Gaming Disorder (2018)
  169. Altered Heart Rate Variability During Gaming in Internet Gaming Disorder (2018)
  170. Altered Gray Matter Volume and Resting-State Connectivity in Individuals With Internet Gaming Disorder: A Voxel-Based Morphometry and Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study (2018)
  171. Increased Insular Cortical Thickness Associated With Symptom Severity in Male Youths With Internet Gaming Disorder: A Surface-Based Morphometric Study (2018)
  172. Gender-related functional connectivity and craving during gaming and immediate abstinence during a mandatory break: Implications for development and progression of internet gaming disorder (2018)
  173. Bupropion Shows Different Effects on Brain Functional Connectivity in Patients With Internet-Based Gambling Disorder and Internet Gaming Disorder (2018)
  174. Impulsive Internet Game Play Is Associated With Increased Functional Connectivity Between the Default Mode and Salience Networks in Depressed Patients With Short Allele of Serotonin Transporter Gene (2018)
  175. The roles of selective attention and desensitization in the association between video gameplay and aggression: An ERP investigation (2018)
  176. The Comorbidity Between Internet Gaming Disorder and Depression: Interrelationship and Neural Mechanisms (2018)
  177. Preliminary evidence of altered gray matter volume in subjects with internet gaming disorder: associations with history of childhood attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms (2018)
  178. Cortical thickness and volume abnormalities in Internet gaming disorder: Evidence from comparison of recreational Internet game users (2018)
  179. Neurobiological Correlates in Internet Gaming Disorder: A Systematic Literature Review (2018)
  180. Social genomics of healthy and disordered internet gaming (2018)
  181. Longitudinal Changes in Neural Connectivity in Patients With Internet Gaming Disorder: A Resting-State EEG Coherence Study.
  182. Decreased Serum Glutamate Levels in Male Adults with Internet Gaming Disorder: A Pilot Study (2018)
  183. Resting-State Activity of Prefrontal-Striatal Circuits in Internet Gaming Disorder: Changes With Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Predictors of Treatment Response (2018)
  184. Neural Correlates of Distorted Self-concept in Individuals With Internet Gaming Disorder: A Functional MRI Study (2018)
  185. Discriminating Pathological and Non-pathological Internet Gamers Using Sparse Neuroanatomical Features (2018)
  186. Individual differences in implicit learning abilities and impulsive behavior in the context of Internet addiction and Internet Gaming Disorder under the consideration of gender (2018)
  187. Sex differences in resting-state cerebral activity alterations in internet gaming disorder (2018)
  188. Internet Game Overuse Is Associated With an Alteration of Fronto-Striatal Functional Connectivity During Reward Feedback Processing (2018)
  189. Editorial: Neural Mechanisms Underlying Internet Gaming Disorder (2018)
  190. Altered Heart Rate Variability During Gameplay in Internet Gaming Disorder: The Impact of Situations During the Game (2018)
  191. The Neural Correlates of Implicit Cognitive Bias Toward Internet-Related Cues in Internet Addiction: An ERP Study (2018)
  192. Subregions of the Anterior Cingulate Cortex Form Distinct Functional Connectivity Patterns in Young Males With Internet Gaming Disorder With Comorbid Depression (2018)
  193. Gender-related differences in neural responses to gaming cues before and after gaming: Implications for gender-specific vulnerabilities to Internet gaming disorder (2018)
  194. Alterations in the connection topology of brain structural networks in Internet gaming addiction (2018)
  195. Mapping Internet gaming disorder using effective connectivity: A spectral dynamic causal modeling study (2018)
  196. Transcranial direct current stimulation for online gamers: A prospective single-arm feasibility study (2018)
  197. Females are more vulnerable to Internet gaming disorder than males: Evidence from cortical thickness abnormalities (2018)
  198. Genetic association of human Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone Receptor 1 (CRHR1) with Internet gaming addiction in Korean male adolescents (2018)
  199. Gender-related differences in cue-elicited cravings in Internet gaming disorder: The effects of deprivation (2018)
  200. Violence in video game produces a lower activation of limbic and temporal areas in response to social inclusion images (2018)
  201. Association between internet gaming addiction and leukocyte telomere length in Korean male adolescents (2018)
  202. Cue-elicited craving-related lentiform activation during gaming deprivation is associated with the emergence of Internet gaming disorder (2019)
  203. Neurophysiological Mechanisms of Resilience as a Protective Factor in Patients with Internet Gaming Disorder: A Resting-State EEG Coherence Study (2019)
  204. Brain response features during forced break could predict subsequent recovery in internet gaming disorder: A longitudinal study (2019)
  205. Lipidomic profiles disturbed by the internet gaming disorder in young Korean males (2019)
  206. Altered brain functional networks in Internet gaming disorder: independent component and graph theoretical analysis under a probability discounting task (2019)
  207. Alterations in functional networks during cue-reactivity in Internet gaming disorder (2019)
  208. Meta-analyses of the functional neural alterations in subjects with Internet gaming disorder: Similarities and differences across different paradigms (2019)
  209. Stress System Response and Decision Making in Heavy Episodic Users of Alcohol and Online Video Games (2019)
  210. Hypometabolism and altered metabolic connectivity in patients with internet gaming disorder and alcohol use disorder (2019)
  211. Diagnostic and Classification Considerations Regarding Gaming Disorder: Neurocognitive and Neurobiological Features (2019)
  212. Dysfunctional attentional bias and inhibitory control during anti-saccade task in patients with internet gaming disorder: An eye tracking study (2019)
  213. Maladaptive neurovisceral interactions in patients with Internet gaming disorder: A study of heart rate variability and functional neural connectivity using the graph theory approach (2019)
  214. Dysfunctional cognitive control and reward processing in adolescents with Internet gaming disorder (2019)
  215. Resting-State fMRI Study of ADHD and Internet Gaming Disorder (2019)
  216. Diminished Frontal Theta Activity During Gaming in Young Adults With Internet Gaming Disorder (2019)
  217. Relationship between Internet Gaming Disorder with Depressive Syndrome and Dopamine Transporter Condition in Online Games Player (2019)
  218. Altered brain activities associated with cue reactivity during forced break in subjects with Internet gaming disorder (2019)
  219. Addiction severity modulates the precuneus involvement in internet gaming disorder: Functionality, morphology and effective connectivity (2019)
  220. A preliminary study of disrupted functional network in individuals with Internet gaming disorder: Evidence from the comparison with recreational game users (2019)
  221. Functional neural changes and altered cortical-subcortical connectivity associated with recovery from Internet gaming disorder (2019)
  222. Dorsal striatal functional connectivity changes in Internet gaming disorder: A longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging study (2019)
  223. Structural brain changes in young males addicted to video-gaming (2020)
  224. Video Game Addiction and Emotional States: Possible Confusion Between Pleasure and Happiness? (2020)
  225. Is monetary reward processing altered in drug-naïve youth with a behavioral addiction? Findings from internet gaming disorder (2020)
  226. Alterations in Amygdala Connectivity in Internet Addiction Disorder (2020)
  227. What We Know About Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games (2020)
  228. The correlation between family relationships and brain activity within the reward circuit in adolescents with Internet gaming disorder (2020)

Third Section: Internet Addiction/Porn Use Studies Demonstrating Causality:

Studies from the above lists followed Internet addicts through recovery. All reported a *reversal* of certain bio-markers & symptoms:

  1. Effects of electroacupuncture combined psycho-intervention on cognitive function and event related potentials P300 and mismatch negativity in patients with internet addiction (2012)
  2. Brain correlates of craving for online gaming under cue exposure in subjects with Internet gaming addiction and in remitted subjects. (2011)
  3. P300 change and cognitive behavioral therapy in subjects with Internet addiction disorder: A 3 month follow-up study (2011)
  4. Virtual reality therapy for internet gaming disorder (2014)
  5. Effects of craving behavioral intervention on neural substrates of cue-induced craving in Internet gaming disorder (2016)
  6. Changes of quality of life and cognitive function in individuals with Internet gaming disorder: A 6-month follow-up (2016)
  7. Effect of electro-acupuncture combined with psychological intervention on mental symptoms and P50 of auditory evoked potential in patients with internet addiction disorder (2017)
  8. The Facebook Experiment: Quitting Facebook Leads to Higher Levels of Well-Being (2016)
  9. Electro-acupuncture treatment for internet addiction: Evidence of normalization of impulse control disorder in adolescents (2017)
  10. Resting-State Activity of Prefrontal-Striatal Circuits in Internet Gaming Disorder: Changes With Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Predictors of Treatment Response (2018)
  11. Transcranial direct current stimulation for online gamers: A prospective single-arm feasibility study (2018)
  12. Brain response features during forced break could predict subsequent recovery in internet gaming disorder: A longitudinal study (2019)
  13. Resting-State fMRI Study of ADHD and Internet Gaming Disorder (2019)
  14. Functional neural changes and altered cortical-subcortical connectivity associated with recovery from Internet gaming disorder (2019)
  15. Dorsal striatal functional connectivity changes in Internet gaming disorder: A longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging study (2019)
  16. Changes of Neurotransmitters in Youth With Internet and Smartphone Addiction: A Comparison With Healthy Controls and Changes After Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (2020)

Methodologies include elimination of porn/internet use; assessing users over time; assessing non-users after use.

  1. Online communication, compulsive internet use, and psychosocial well-being among adolescents: A longitudinal study. (2008)
  2. Adolescents’ Exposure to Sexually Explicit Internet Material and Sexual Satisfaction: A Longitudinal Study (2009)
  3. Effect of Pathological Use of the Internet on Adolescent Mental Health (2010)
  4. Precursor or Sequela: Pathological Disorders in People with Internet Addiction Disorder (2011)
  5. A Love That Doesn’t Last: Pornography Consumption and Weakened Commitment to One’s Romantic Partner (2012)
  6. Internet abusers associate with a depressive state but not a depressive trait (2013)
  7. The exacerbation of depression, hostility, and social anxiety in the course of Internet addiction among adolescents: A prospective study (2014)
  8. Early adolescent boys’ exposure to internet pornography: Relationships to pubertal timing, sensation seeking, and academic performance (2014)
  9. Unusual masturbatory practice as an etiological factor in the diagnosis and treatment of sexual dysfunction in young men (2014)
  10. Trading Later Rewards for Current Pleasure: Pornography Consumption and Delay Discounting (2015)
  11. Health officials and university experts in Swansea have found new evidence that excessive use of the internet can cause mental health problems (2015)
  12. Male masturbation habits and sexual dysfunctions (2016)
  13. Is Internet Pornography Causing Sexual Dysfunctions? A Review with Clinical Reports (2016)
  14. The Dark Side of Internet Use: Two Longitudinal Studies of Excessive Internet Use, Depressive Symptoms, School Burnout and Engagement Among Finnish Early and Late Adolescents (2016)
  15. Does Viewing Pornography Reduce Marital Quality Over Time? Evidence from Longitudinal Data (2016)
  16. Till Porn Do Us Part? Longitudinal Effects of Pornography Use on Divorce, (2016)
  17. Effectiveness of Brief Abstinence for Modifying Problematic Internet Gaming Cognitions and Behaviors (2017)
  18. Craving Behavior Intervention in Ameliorating College Students’ Internet Game Disorder: A Longitudinal Study (2017)
  19. Differential physiological changes following internet exposure in higher and lower problematic internet users (2017)
  20. Reciprocal Relationship between Internet Addiction and Network-Related Maladaptive Cognition among Chinese College Freshmen: A Longitudinal Cross-Lagged Analysis (2017)
  21. Depression, anxiety, and smartphone addiction in university students: A cross sectional study (2017)
  22. Association between childhood and adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms in Korean young adults with Internet addiction (2017)
  23. Montreal researchers find 1st link between shooter games, loss of grey matter in hippocampus (2017)
  24. Taking Facebook at face value: why the use of social media may cause mental disorder (2017)
  25. Orbitofrontal gray matter deficits as marker of Internet gaming disorder: converging evidence from a cross-sectional and prospective longitudinal design (2017)
  26. Outcome of the Psychological Intervention Program: Internet Use for Youth (2017)
  27. Clinical predictors of gaming abstinence in help-seeking adult problematic gamers (2018)
  28. The links between healthy, problematic, and addicted Internet use regarding comorbidities and self-concept-related characteristics (2018)
  29. Adverse physiological and psychological effects of screen time on children and adolescents: Literature review and case study (2018)
  30. Adolescent Internet Use, Social Integration, and Depressive Symptoms: Analysis from a Longitudinal Cohort Survey (2018)
  31. Smartphone Restriction and Its Effect on Subjective Withdrawal Related Scores (2018)
  32. Does “forced abstinence” from gaming lead to pornography use? Insight from the April 2018 crash of Fortnite’s servers (2018)
  33. Are Video Games a Gateway to Gambling? A Longitudinal Study Based on a Representative Norwegian Sample (2018)
  34. Bidirectional predictions between Internet addiction and probable depression among Chinese adolescents (2018)
  35. A Healthy Mind for Problematic Internet Use (2018)
  36. Testing Longitudinal Relationships between Internet Addiction and Well-Being in Hong Kong Adolescents: Cross-Lagged Analyses Based on three Waves of Data (2018)
  37. Attachment Disorder and Early Media Exposure: Neurobehavioral symptoms mimicking autism spectrum disorder (2018)
  38. A Week Without Using Social Media: Results from an Ecological Momentary Intervention Study Using Smartphones (2018)
  39. No More FOMO: Limiting Social Media Decreases Loneliness and Depression (2018)
  40. A Cross-Lagged Study of Developmental Trajectories of Video Game Engagement, Addiction, and Mental Health (2018)
  41. Short abstinence from online social networking sites reduces perceived stress, especially in excessive users (2018)
  42. Bidirectional Associations Between Self-Reported Gaming Disorder and Adult Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Evidence From a Sample of Young Swiss Men (2018)
  43. Cue-elicited craving-related lentiform activation during gaming deprivation is associated with the emergence of Internet gaming disorder (2019)
  44. Social media addiction and sexual dysfunction among Iranian women: The mediating role of intimacy and social support (2019)
  45. Taking a break: The effect of taking a vacation from Facebook and Instagram on subjective well-being (2019)
  46. Bidirectional relationships of psychiatric symptoms with internet addiction in college students: A prospective study (2019)
  47. Reciprocal relationship between depression and Internet gaming disorder in children: A 12-month follow-up of the iCURE study using cross-lagged path analysis (2019)
  48. Withdrawal Symptoms Among American Collegiate Internet Gamers (2020)
  49. The Consequences of Compulsion: A 4-year Longitudinal Study of Compulsive Internet Use and Emotion Regulation Difficulties (2020)
  50. The Matthew Effect in Recovery From Smartphone Addiction in a 6-Month Longitudinal Study of Children and Adolescents (2020)
  51. Temporal Associations Between Social Media Use and Depression (2020)
  52. Characteristics of social media ‘detoxification’ in university students (2021)