Impaired executive control and reward circuit in Internet gaming addicts under a delay discounting task: independent component analysis

This study utilized independent component analysis to explore the abnormal functional connectivity (FC) in male participants with Internet gaming disorder (IGD). Functional magnetic resonance imaging and behavioral data were collected from 21 healthy controls (HC) and 18 IGD patients when they were performing a delay discounting task. Behavioral results revealed that the IGD patients showed higher delay discounting rates than HC. Two networks were found to be associated with IGD: (1) the executive control network containing the anterior cingulate cortex and the medial and superior frontal gyrus, and (2) the basal ganglia network containing the lentiform nucleus. Comparing to HC, IGD exhibited stronger FC when selecting small and now options. In addition, the delay discounting rates were positively correlated with the modulation of the two networks and the reaction time. The results suggested that the IGD patients have enhanced sensitivity to reward and decreased ability to control their impulsivity effectively, which leads to myopic decision making.