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. 2018 Nov 8;13(11):1203-1214.
doi: 10.1093/scan/nsy084.

Gender-related differences in neural responses to gaming cues before and after gaming: implications for gender-specific vulnerabilities to Internet gaming disorder

Guangheng Dong  1 , Lingxiao Wang  2 , Xiaoxia Du  3 , Marc N Potenza  4   5
Affiliations

Gender-related differences in neural responses to gaming cues before and after gaming: implications for gender-specific vulnerabilities to Internet gaming disorder

Guangheng Dong et al. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci. .

Abstract

More males than females play video games and develop problems with gaming. However, little is known regarding how males and females who game on the Internet may differ with respect to neural responses to gaming cues. Behavioral and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data were recorded from 40 female and 68 male Internet gamers. This study included three components including participation in a pre-gaming cue-craving task, 30 min of online gaming and a post-gaming cue-elicited-craving task. Group differences were examined at pre-gaming, post-gaming and post- vs pre-gaming times. Correlations between brain responses and behavioral performance were calculated. : Gaming-related cues elicited higher cravings in male vs female subjects. Prior to gaming, males demonstrated greater activations in the striatum, orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), inferior frontal cortex and bilateral declive. Following gaming, male subjects demonstrated greater activations in the medial frontal gyrus and bilateral middle temporal gyri. In a post-pre comparison, male subjects demonstrated greater thalamic activation than did female subjects. Short-term gaming elicited in males vs females more craving-related activations to gaming cues. These results suggest neural mechanisms for why males may be more vulnerable than females in developing Internet gaming disorder.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The fMRI task. (A) In one trial of the task, a fixation was presented first for 500 ms, and then a ‘response’ stage lasted for up to 4000 ms. Participants were asked to answer whether or not there were faces in the pictures and press the relevant keys. A jittered black screen was presented for 1500–3500 ms. After this, the evaluation stage followed, in which subjects were asked to evaluate the level of their cravings (0–5) for the relevant behaviors (playing games or typing). This process lasted for up to 4000 ms and was terminated by a button press. After another jitter ranging from 1500–3500 ms, the next trial ensued. (B) Examples of the four types of trials used in the current study. Face_Gaming: Gaming pictures with faces; Face_Typing: typing pictures with faces; Gaming: gaming pictures; Typing: typing pictures.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Gaming-related cue-elicited cravings in males and females at pre- and post-gaming times.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Gender-related differences in craving in response to gaming-related cues prior to gaming. (A) Prior to gaming, males as compared with females demonstrated greater brain activations in the striatum, bilateral declive, OFC and inferior frontal gyrus. (B) Beta weights from the striatal ROI showing cue-elicited activation in males and females. (C) A positive correlation between beta weights from the striatal ROI and subjective craving was observed in males but not females.
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Gender-related differences in craving in response to gaming-related cues after gaming. (A) Following gaming, males as compared with females demonstrated greater brain activations in the MFG and bilateral middle temporal gyrus. (B) Beta weights from the MFG ROI showing cue-elicited activation in males and females. (C) A positive correlation between beta weights from the MFG ROI and subjective craving was observed in males and females.
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Gender-related differences in craving in response to gaming-related cues following as compared with before gaming. (A) Following gaming as compared with before gaming, males as compared with females demonstrated greater brain activations in the thalamus. (B) Beta weights from the thalamic ROI showing cue-elicited activation in males and females at pre- and post-gaming times. (C) A positive correlation between beta weights from the thalamic ROI and subjective craving post-gaming was observed in males but not females.
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