Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 29, 2026
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation for Online Gamers
Published on: November 9, 2019
The inhibition of proactive interference among adults with Internet gaming disorder
Chih-Hung Ko1, Peng-Wei Wang, Tai-Ling Liu
1Department of Psychiatry, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan; Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan; Department of Psychiatry, Kaohsiung Municipal Hsiao-Kang Hospital, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
Introduction:
Cognitive control plays a pivotal role in the mechanism of addictive behavior. The aim of the study was to evaluate the deficit in inhibition of proactive interference of Internet gaming disorder (IGD) using a directed forgetting task among young adults.
Methods:
A total of 64 participants with IGD and 69 controls were recruited on a university campus. They completed the directed forgetting task for online gaming words and neutral words.
Results:
The results demonstrated that the IGD group had a poorer performance on the directed forgetting task, and this represented a deficit in inhibition of proactive interference. They also had a higher tendency to remember online gaming words rather than neutral words in comparison with the control group. This demonstrated memory bias toward online gaming words.
Discussion:
These results suggested that more attention should be paid to deficits in inhibition of proactive interference and memory bias toward gaming content when treating subjects with IGD. Furthermore, it is essential and practical to prevent exposure to online gaming-related cues when endeavoring to control online gaming behavior.
