Interference with Processing Negative Stimuli in Problematic Internet Users: Preliminary Evidence from an Emotional Stroop Task

Abstract

Although it has been proposed that problematic Internet use (PIU) may represent a dysfunctional coping strategy in response to negative emotional states, there is a lack of experimental studies that directly test how individuals with PIU process emotional stimuli. In this study, we used an emotional Stroop task to examine the implicit bias toward positive and negative words in a sample of 100 individuals (54 females) who also completed questionnaires assessing PIU and current affect states. A significant interaction was observed between PIU and emotional Stroop effects (ESEs), with participants who displayed prominent PIU symptoms showing higher ESEs for negative words compared to other participants. No significant differences were found on the ESEs for positive words among participants. These findings suggest that PIU may be linked to a specific emotional interference with processing negative stimuli, thus supporting the view that PIU is a dysfunctional strategy to cope with negative affect. A potential treatment implication for individuals with PIU includes a need to enhance the capacity to process and regulate negative feelings.

Problematic Internet Usage and Self-Esteem in Chinese Undergraduate Students: The Mediation Effects of Individual Affect and Relationship Satisfaction

“…Individual affect can also influence Internet-related behaviour. A relationship between negative affect and PIU has also been reported by several empirical studies [ 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 ]. Matthews, Farnsworth and Griffiths [ 88 ] revealed that negative mood states can predict students’ involvement in online gambling, a specific category of PIU.…”

Dissociation in Problematic Gaming: a Systematic Review

“…More precisely, excessive immersion in the virtual world reflected by the construct of cognitive absorption might play a pivotal role in the development of problematic gaming, especially for people who use video games as a preferred way to cope with particularly distressing internal experiences and negative affect states [64,75]. Experimental research shows indeed that people with problematic Internet use may have a specific difficulty in processing negative stimuli [76], and that problematic gamers may have a preference for virtual over real-life stimuli linked to escapism motives [41]. This is consistent with theoretical insights from seminal case studies in problematic gaming, which suggested that dissociative states in this context might serve a protective purpose, and specifically that an excessive involvement in video games may protect the individual from unbearable states of mind related to traumatic or otherwise overwhelming experiences that damage his or her sense of safety and security [42].…”

Problematic video game use as an emotional coping strategy: Evidence from a sample of MMORPG gamers

“…Emotional processing and emotion regulation have been widely analyzed in previous studies of smartphone, social networks, and general Internet use, showing both a positive effect on well-being (Elhai et al, 2018;Hoffner & Lee, 2015;Kardefelt-Winther, 2014a) and a link to problematic Internet use (Casale, Caplan, & Fioravanti, 2016;Hormes, Kearns, & Timko, 2014;Schimmenti, Starcevic, Gervasi, Deleuze, & Billieux, 2018;Yildiz, 2017). In the context of online gaming, many studies have reported a higher use of video games for emotion regulation purposes (Gaetan, Bréjard, & Bonnet, 2016;Hemenover & Bowman, 2018;Hussain & Griffiths, 2009;Villani et al, 2018).…”