Mental Imagery Tasks to Reduce Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) Cravings

Mental Imagery Tasks to Reduce IGD Cravings: Visual Imagery and Auditory Imagery

To test whether visual and auditory imagery tasks can effectively reduce the craving for IGD.

Study Overview

• Status: Unknown
• Conditions: Internet Gaming Disorder
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Imagery tasks

Detailed Description

This project is to use imagery tasks to reduce the craving of internet gamers. To test whether visual and auditory imagery tasks can effectively reduce the craving for IGD. This project will be conducted in Beijing, China, based on a large sample of internet gamers.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 30
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• China
  • Beijing
    • Beijing, Beijing, China, 100875
      • State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 30 years (Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• The scores of the 9 items of The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition(DSM-5) recommended diagnosis for Internet gaming disorder ≥ 5.
• Engagement in popular Internet games (e.g. Arena of Valor, League of Legends and Player Unknown's Battle Grounds) for over 20 hours per week for a minimum of 12 months.
• The scores of the Young-Internet Addiction Test(Y-IAT) ≥ 50

Exclusion Criteria:

• Current or history of use of illegal substances and gambling;
• Current or history of psychiatric or neurological illness;
• Current use of psychotropic medications.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Basic Science
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Double

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Visual imagery tasks group; During the intervention, each participant of this group will be asked to create visual mental images.	Behavioral: Imagery tasks; All participants need to finish both visual imagery tasks and auditory imagery tasks. Visual imagery tasks and auditory imagery tasks will be carried out at intervals to avoid the influence of different tasks. The sequence of imagery tasks will be counterbalanced across participants.
Experimental: Auditory imagery tasks group; During the intervention, each participant of this group will be asked to create auditory mental images.	Behavioral: Imagery tasks; All participants need to finish both visual imagery tasks and auditory imagery tasks. Visual imagery tasks and auditory imagery tasks will be carried out at intervals to avoid the influence of different tasks. The sequence of imagery tasks will be counterbalanced across participants.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
The craving of internet gamers	The craving of internet gamers is measured by a single item Visual Analogue Scale with 1 to 7 likert score	0-1 minutes before each set of cue
The craving of internet gamers after cue	The craving of internet gamers is measured by a single item Visual Analogue Scale with 1 to 7 likert scoreScale with 1 to 7 likert score	0-1 minutes after showing cue
The craving of internet gamers	The craving of internet gamers is measured by a single item Visual Analogue Scale with 1 to 7 likert score	0-1 minutes after finishing each block of tasks

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Jin-tao Zhang
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jin-Tao Zhang, Phd, Beijing Normal University

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• May J, Andrade J, Panabokke N, Kavanagh D. Visuospatial tasks suppress craving for cigarettes. Behav Res Ther. 2010 Jun;48(6):476-85. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2010.02.001. Epub 2010 Feb 7.
• Yates M, Kamboj SK. Alcohol related mental imagery: The effects of a priming dose in at risk drinkers. Addict Behav Rep. 2017 Aug 31;6:71-75. doi: 10.1016/j.abrep.2017.08.003. eCollection 2017 Dec.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Anticipated): March 10, 2019
• Primary Completion (Anticipated): May 31, 2019
• Study Completion (Anticipated): August 31, 2019

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: March 1, 2019
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 7, 2019
• First Posted (Actual): March 11, 2019

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): March 12, 2019
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 10, 2019
• Last Verified: March 1, 2019

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Compulsive Behavior; Impulsive Behavior; Behavior, Addictive; Internet Addiction Disorder
• Other Study ID Numbers: Mental imagery tasks

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No