Imbalance of habit-based versus goal-directed learning in internet gaming disorder: evidence from fMRI and behavioral...

The balance between habit control action and goal-directed action of the instrumental learning processes contributes to the development and maintenance of addictive behavior. However, the neural mechanisms underlying this imbalance in internet gaming disorder (IGD) remain unexplored.

Functional MRI data were collected from 26 IGD and 28 matched recreational game users (RGU) during a discriminative instrumental learning task. Behavioral performance and task-related brain activation was compared between the IGD and RGU. Correlations between addiction severity (IAT scores) and neural/behavioral measures were analyzed.

Compared with RGU, the IGD group exhibited poorer behavioral performance, characterized by hyperactivation in the right inferior frontal gyrus, bilateral precuneus, bilateral lingual gyrus, and left precentral gyrus, alongside hypoactivation in the left inferior frontal gyrus. Notably, addictive severity scores negatively correlated with accuracy in the outcome devaluation stage, indicating a reliance on habitual control.

Our findings suggest that IGD is associated with a shift from goal-directed to habit-based control, marked by dysfunctional engagement of prefrontal-striatal circuits. This imbalance may underlie the compulsive gaming behaviors observed in IGD, offering novel insights into its neurocognitive mechanisms.