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EEG Coherence as an Indicator of Integrative Brain Processes in Internet and Game Addiction

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Abstract—

A coherence analysis of Internet and game addicts was carried out. The results of studies indicate changes in the functional interaction of various cortical zones in both Internet and game addict groups. However, tendencies of these changes are opposite, which is expressed in a decrease in total coherence level in Internet addicts and in an increase in game addicts. In the course of study, a disturbance in the frontal-occipital gradient was found in both experimental groups. An increase in interhemispheric coherence in the occipital regions among Internet addicts is noticed against the background of a decreased synchronization of wave oscillations in frontal areas; and among game addicts, it is noticed against the background of increased synchronization. The noticed changes in cortical neurodynamics are most likely of compensatory nature, aimed at maintaining interaction of brain structures by reducing functional activity of the brain. In case of Internet addiction, addictive behavior is most likely determined by decreased inhibitory influence of the cerebral cortex on the subcortical structures of the brain, while in game addicts it is determined by excessive activity of the limbic system. The obtained data make it possible to form different approaches for the treatment of Internet and game addiction. Thus, while in getting rid of Internet addiction, the focus should be on increasing coherence in the prefrontal cortex, the treatment of game addiction, on the contrary, should be aimed at reducing the degree of synchronization in these areas.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors express their gratitude to the director of the PSI-FACTOR Psychological Center, affiliated with Dagestan State University, Arsen Nabievich Dzhabrailov, for the provided assistance in the performance of the study.

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    Z. A. Taigibova & A. I. Rabadanova

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Statement of compliance with standards of research involving humans as subjects. All the studies are carried out according to the principles of biomedical ethics, formulated in the Helsinki Declaration (1964) and its following updates and approved by the local bioethical committee of the Dagestan State University (Makhachkala). Each participant of the study gave voluntary written informed consent, which he or she signed after being clarified about the potential risks and advantages, as well as about the character of the impending study.

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Taigibova, Z.A., Rabadanova, A.I. EEG Coherence as an Indicator of Integrative Brain Processes in Internet and Game Addiction. Hum Physiol 48, 421–431 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0362119722040120

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