Short-term abstinence effects across potential behavioral addictions: A systematic review

Area of Science:

• Behavioral Addiction Research
• Psychology
• Clinical Intervention Studies

Background:

• Understanding short-term abstinence effects is crucial for behavioral addictions.
• Withdrawal, craving, and relapse are key addiction-related symptoms.
• Short-term abstinence may serve as a clinical intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

• Synthesize research on short-term abstinence effects across behavioral addictions.
• Examine withdrawal, craving, and relapse manifestations.
• Evaluate benefits and counterproductive consequences of abstinence.

Main Methods:

• Systematic review of 47 prospective studies.
• Focused on six potential behavioral addictions: exercise, gambling, gaming, mobile phone use, pornography use, and social media use.
• Analyzed studies based on abstinence effects, symptom manifestation, and intervention utility.

Main Results:

• A scarcity of prospective studies exists, except for exercise.
• Exercise showed distinct withdrawal symptoms, primarily mood disturbances.
• Withdrawal and craving were moderately studied; relapse via abstinence protocols is underutilized.
• Short-term abstinence shows intervention potential for gaming, pornography, mobile phone, and social media use.

Conclusions:

• More prospective research is needed on abstinence effects in behavioral addictions.
• Relapse and counterproductive consequences (e.g., rebound effects) require further investigation.
• Short-term abstinence is a promising intervention but needs comprehensive evaluation.