Self-Control Abilities in Specific Types of Problematic Usage of the Internet: Findings From Clinically Validated

Silke M Müller1, Stephanie Antons1, Anna M Schmid1

  • 1Department of General Psychology: Cognition, Faculty of Computer Science, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany (S.M. Müller, Antons, Kessling, Klein, Büsche, Oelker, Brandtner, Wegmann, Brand); Center for Behavioral Addiction Research (CeBAR), Center for Translational Neuro- and Behavioral Sciences, University Hospital Essen, University of Duisburg-Essen, Germany (S.M. Müller, Antons, Büsche, Brandtner, Wegmann, Brand); Erwin L. Hahn Institute for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Essen, Germany (S.M. Müller, Antons, Büsche, Brand); Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Otto-Friedrich University of Bamberg, Germany (Schmid, Steins-Loeber); Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Hannover Medical School, Hanover, Germany (Thomas, Joshi, A. Müller); Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, University of Siegen, Germany (Krikova, Kampa, Klucken); Department of Psychotherapy and Systems Neuroscience, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany (Kampa, Stark); Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, LWL University Hospital, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany (Mallon, Diers); Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Research Group S:TEP (Substance Use and Related Disorders: Treatment, Epidemiology, and Prevention), University of Lübeck, Germany (Schmidt, Rumpf); Outpatient Clinic for Behavioral Addictions, Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center, Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Germany (Dominick, Wölfling); Department of Molecular Psychology, Institute of Psychology and Education, Ulm University, Germany (Montag); Department of Cognitive Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Germany (Wolf).

Summary

Problematic Internet use (PUI) is linked to reduced self-control and cognitive deficits. Individuals with pathological PUI showed the weakest performance across cognitive tasks, highlighting the need for tailored interventions.

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