Problematic Internet Users' Discounting Behaviors Reflect an Inability to Delay Gratification, Not Risk Taking

The relationship between impulse control disorder (ICD) behaviors and problematic Internet use (PIU) has been established in the literature. Our aim was to further investigate whether the ICDs of individuals suffering from PIU primarily involve an inability to delay gratification or a tendency to take risks. Using delay and probability discounting tasks, we compared the subjective value of discounting between PIU individuals and controls in conditions of gaining or losing different monetary amounts. The results of the present study revealed a significant positive relationship between PIU and impulsivity scores. PIU individuals discounted delayed amounts more steeply than controls, regardless of the reward sign and monetary amount. Conversely, there were no significant group differences in the probability discounting task. These findings suggest that PIU individuals may be more impulsive than controls when impulsivity is framed as insensitivity to delayed outcomes rather than as a tendency to take risks, which is inconsistent with the view of impulsivity as a general trait.

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