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Effects of smartphone restriction on cue-related neural activity

With the increasing popularity of smartphones in the past decades, physical, social, and psychological consequences of excessive smartphone use (ESU) have been increasingly debated. Cue-reactivity (CR) has been discussed as a core mechanism driving this behavior, and previous studies have highlighte...

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Main Authors: Schmitgen, Mike (Author) , Henemann, Gudrun Maria (Author) , Koenig, Julian (Author) , Otte, Marie-Luise (Author) , Rosero, Jakob P. (Author) , Bach, Patrick (Author) , Haage, Sophie H. (Author) , Wolf, Nadine D. (Author) , Wolf, Robert Christian (Author)
Format: Article (Journal)
Language:English
Published: June 2025
In: Computers in human behavior
Year: 2025, Volume: 167, Pages: 1-10
ISSN:0747-5632
DOI:10.1016/j.chb.2025.108610
Online Access:Verlag, kostenfrei, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2025.108610
Verlag, kostenfrei, Volltext: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563225000573
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Author Notes:Mike M. Schmitgen, Gudrun M. Henemann, Julian Koenig, Marie-Luise Otte, Jakob P. Rosero, Patrick Bach, Sophie H. Haage, Nadine D. Wolf, Robert C. Wolf
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Summary:With the increasing popularity of smartphones in the past decades, physical, social, and psychological consequences of excessive smartphone use (ESU) have been increasingly debated. Cue-reactivity (CR) has been discussed as a core mechanism driving this behavior, and previous studies have highlighted distinct neural mechanisms underlying CR in individuals with ESU. Here, we used a functional MRI (fMRI) CR-paradigm to investigate the effects of smartphone restriction over 72 h in 25 young adult smartphone users. The CR-task used contrasts of images showing smartphones vs. neutral stimuli and active vs. inactive smartphones. Region-of-interest based correlations with psychometric scores were performed, and activity changes after 72 h were investigated on a neurochemical level using neurotransmitter probability maps. CR-related brain activity changes over time were most prominent in the nucleus accumbens and anterior cingulate cortex (p < 0.001). Such changes were significantly associated with dopamine- and serotonin-receptor probabilities (pFDR < 0.05). Significant associations between parietal cortex activity and craving were detected (p < 0.05). This study provides evidence for CR-related modulation of neural activity in key regions of salience, motor-inhibition, and reward processing after 72 h smartphone restriction. The identified neural mechanisms may substantially promote addictive behavior in people at risk for ESU.
Item Description:Online verfügbar: 19. Februar 2025, Artikelversion: 1. März 2025
Gesehen am 18.08.2025
Physical Description:Online Resource
ISSN:0747-5632
DOI:10.1016/j.chb.2025.108610

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