Problematic Gaming and Gambling: A Systematic Review of Task-Specific EEG Protocols

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Psychiatry
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Problematic gaming and gambling share behavioral similarities.
• No established neurophysiological biomarkers differentiate these conditions.
• Existing research lacks standardized methodologies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review literature on neurophysiological methods for characterizing gaming and gambling disorders.
• To identify potential biomarkers for distinguishing these conditions.
• To assess the heterogeneity and limitations of current research.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature review across PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and EBSCOhost.
• Search terms included ERP, evoked potentials, steady-state, EEG, and gaming/gambling.
• Extracted data on participants, experimental setup, and evaluated processes from 24 studies.

Main Results:

• Gambling research primarily focuses on reward processes; gaming research on information processing.
• Significant heterogeneity exists in experimental tasks, implementation, and interpretation of event-related potentials (ERPs).
• Small sample sizes and confounding variables limit generalizability.

Conclusions:

• The heterogeneity in event-related potential (ERP) paradigms and lack of standardized procedures hinder the identification of reliable biomarkers.
• Current neurophysiological methods cannot reliably discriminate or diagnose gaming and gambling disorders.
• Further research with standardized protocols is needed to identify susceptible populations and aid in diagnosis and monitoring.