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Thinking beyond substances: The imprecision problem in behavioral addiction research and a necessary road
Campbell Ince1, Émilie Gaudet2, Beáta Bőthe2
1School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University.
Abstract:
Comments on the article by J. B. Grubbs and C. L. Boness (see record 2025-66167-001). Grubbs and Boness provide a compelling critique for behavioral addiction (BA) research, particularly the uncritical application of substance use disorder (SUD) frameworks to excessive engagement in nonsubstance behaviors. We agree that borrowing SUD criteria might have led to conceptual and methodological shortcomings that hinder diagnostic precision, treatment approaches, and policy decisions. Expanding their critique, we suggest that unmapped heterogeneity-across individuals as well as different behaviors-represents a fundamental imprecision problem in BA research. Rather than forcing BAs into existing frameworks or abandoning addiction models entirely, we advocate for an integrative approach that carefully combines established addiction paradigms with behavior-specific insights. Critically, we emphasize the importance of distinguishing addiction from nonaddictive dysregulation driven by impulsivity, compulsivity, emotional dysregulation, or other mechanisms behind excessive and problematic engagement. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2025 APA, all rights reserved).
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