title: Cognitive flexibility in internet addicts: fMRI evidence from difficult-to-easy and easy-to-difficult switching situations.
abstract: Internet addiction disorder (IAD) has raised widespread public health concerns. In this study, we explored the cognitive flexibility in IAD subjects using a color-word Stroop task. Behavioral and imaging data were collected from 15 IAD subjects (21.2±3.2years) and 15 healthy controls (HC, 22.1±3.6years). Group comparisons found that IAD subjects show higher superior temporal gyrus activations than healthy controls in switching (easy to difficult; difficult to easy) than in repeating trials. In addition, in difficult-to-easy situation, IAD subjects show higher brain activation in bilateral insula than healthy controls; in easy-to-difficult situation, IAD subjects show higher brain activation in bilateral precuneus than healthy controls. Correlations were also performed between behavioral performances and brain activities in relevant brain regions. Taken together, we concluded that IAD subjects engaged more endeavors in executive control and attention in the switching task. From another perspective, IAD subjects show impaired cognitive flexibilities.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province, PR China. Electronic address: dongguangheng@zjnu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Guangheng
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiao
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua City, Zhejiang Province, PR China.
authors.forename: Hongli
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: School of Life Science, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui Province, PR China.
authors.forename: Qilin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Lu
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology*; D016739:Behavior, Addictive / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology; D003071:Cognition; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D056344:Executive Function / Q000502:physiology*; D059907:Functional Neuroimaging; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011930:Reaction Time; D057190:Stroop Test; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000503:physiopathology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Attention shifting; Cognitive flexibility; Executive control; Internet addiction