Dorsal and ventral striatum activity in individuals with buying-shopping disorder during cue-exposure: A functional magnetic resonance imaging study

Buying-shopping disorder (BSD) is a clinical condition in which individuals lose control over their buying behaviour and continue buying despite negative consequences such as indebtedness, loss of family and friends. BSD has been considered a behavioural addiction and first studies provide evidence for cue-reactivity and craving as potential pathomechanisms. The current study aimed at investigating neural correlates of cue-reactivity and craving in individuals with BSD using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).

A cue-reactivity paradigm comprising individualised shopping-related and control cues was applied in n = 18 individuals diagnosed with BSD and n = 18 gender, age, and handedness matched control participants using fMRI. Outside the scanner, symptoms of BSD and craving reactions towards shopping (before and after the cue-reactivity paradigm) were assessed via questionnaires.

Higher subjective craving reactions towards shopping, prior and after exposure to shopping cues, were observed in individuals with BSD compared to control participants. Consistent with studies in addiction research, we found increased activations in the dorsal striatum for individuals with BSD compared to control participants during exposure to shopping cues. Activity in the ventral striatum was associated with symptoms of BSD in affected individuals, but not in control participants.

Consistent with studies investigating cue-reactivity in substance-use and behavioural addictions, the association between cue-exposure and activities in reward-related brain structures such as the dorsal and ventral striatum in BSD participants may contribute to a neural explanation of why individuals experience irresistible urges to buy and lose control over their behaviour.