Reduced left dorsolateral prefrontal activation in problematic smartphone users during the Stroop task: An fNIRS...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychology
• Cognitive Science

Background:

• Problematic smartphone use (PSPU) is a growing concern.
• The neurobiological underpinnings of PSPU, particularly concerning inhibitory control, require further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine inhibitory control and cortical activation patterns in college students with PSPU.
• To elucidate the relationship between behavioral deficits and neurophysiological responses in PSPU.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the color-word matching Stroop task to assess inhibitory control.
• Employed functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to measure cortical activation (oxygenated hemoglobin signals).
• Compared a group of college students with PSPU (n=56) to a control group (n=54).

Main Results:

• The PSPU group exhibited significantly greater Stroop interference and longer reaction times.
• Increased oxygenated hemoglobin (Oxy-Hb) signals during Stroop interference were observed in the left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex, left frontopolar area, and bilateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC).
• The PSPU group showed reduced Oxy-Hb signal changes in the left-DLPFC compared to controls.

Conclusions:

• This study provides novel behavioral and neuroscientific evidence for deficits in inhibitory control among college students with PSPU.
• Findings suggest that PSPU is associated with altered cortical activation, specifically reduced activation in the left-DLPFC.
• These results highlight potential neurobiological mechanisms underlying problematic smartphone use.