Internet addicts show impaired interference control ability: Evidence from Event- related potentials and oscillatory brain responses

Abstract

Abstract Impairment in interference control and inhibitory control is common in internet addiction disorder (IAD). This study explores the relationship between these impairments, event-related spectral perturbations (ERSPs), and conflict monitoring indices in IAD. The Stroop and a modified Stroop tasks were administered to IAD participants and healthy controls (HC) while recording electroencephalography. Early MFN, late MFN, and SP components were determined by comparing the pre-onset baseline with the grand averaged ERP activity. ERSPs were extracted from the EEG to measure power differences between groups at each time frequency point. A cluster-based random permutation test was used for statistical analysis. The IAD group displayed decreased ERP activity in early and late MFN due to diminished ability to detect stimulus and response conflicts. They also showed reduced activity in conflict SP, indicating defective neuronal reflections of compensatory cognitive control and adjustment processes. ERSP analysis revealed significant involvement of low-frequency (theta) and high-frequency (beta2 and gamma) bands in interference control. The IAD group showed significantly reduced ERSP Stroop effect in theta in an earlier time window and significantly higher ERSP Stroop effects at beta2 and gamma frequencies. The study suggests that IAD individuals have impaired executive function, diminished conflict detection, response selection, and resolution, and attenuated conflict adaptation compared to HCs. The diminished conflict monitoring effect in IADs, as indicated by the early and late MFN indices, underscores the need for further research into the neural underpinnings of these impairments.