Wayne Warburton

The consumption of negative news (e.g., reports on wars) and its associated outcomes has raised considerable concern among the public, academics, and policymakers. Although research on, and understanding of, negative news consumption has progressed substantially in recent years, two aspects have received scant attention: distinguishing between usage frequency (or time spent) and problematic consumption (or doomscrolling), and extending the inquiry beyond the well-/ill-being framework. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 1162 Iranian adults (Mage = 30.64, SDage = 8.15) to examine how frequency of negative news consumption and doomscrolling are associated with preparedness and susceptibilities in the face of emergencies and everyday challenges. A MIMIC model, controlling for gender and age, showed that higher doomscrolling was associated with lower resilience in emergencies, lower survival skill competency, higher acceptance of conspiracy beliefs, and more frequent experiences of scams or traumatic incidents due to carelessness and low situational awareness (e.g., experiencing a hazardous situation due to forgetting to turn off electrical appliances or the stove), as well as higher psychological distress. In contrast, frequency of negative news consumption was not associated with any of these outcomes, except psychological distress, and even then only weakly. This study suggests that, in the context of negative news consumption, usage frequency and problematic consumption may not always be associated with the same outcomes or with equal strength. Moreover, when negative news consumption becomes problematic, outcomes beyond well-/ill-being may be observed, such as weakened capacities to identify, evaluate, and respond to emergencies and everyday challenges.

Objective Although depression is a common comorbidity in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), its neurophysiological relationship according to each symptom has rarely been explored. This study aimed to inform clinical practice by exploring the neurophysiological underpinnings of depression comorbidity in ADHD.Methods We conducted a cross-sectional study of 87 children with ADHD (68 males). Resting quantitative electroencephalography (qEEG) recordings were collected with eyes closed. We used various questionnaires to evaluate ADHD symptoms severity, depression, and anxiety. Pearson correlation coefficients were used to investigate the relationship between the z-score relative spectral power of qEEG and each psychological symptom. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS 27.0.Results The study’s findings indicated that theta activity at the frontal, central, and parietal locations had a negative correlation with the severity of ADHD symptoms in children diagnosed with ADHD. In contrast, alpha activity in these same regions demonstrated a positive correlation with ADHD symptom severity. Additionally, delta activity in the regions was negatively correlated with depression severity.Conclusion These findings suggest that alpha and theta activity might serve as a reliable neurophysiological marker of ADHD symptom severity, while delta activity might function as a reliable biological marker of depression severity in children with ADHD. However, further research is needed to generalize the results of this study.

Background: Internet gaming disorder (IGD) has been associated with impairments in executive functioning, particularly inattention and impulsivity. Sleep quality has separately been linked to both gaming behavior and cognitive performance, yet its role as a mediating factor in this relationship is underexplored. Objective: This study aimed to determine whether sleep quality mediates the relationship between IGD symptoms and executive dysfunction in adolescents, specifically focusing on the domains of inattention and hyperactivity or impulsivity. A reverse mediation model was also tested to explore the bidirectional nature of these relationships. Methods: A representative sample of 1000 adolescents (539/1000, 53.9% males), aged between 12 and 17 years (mean 14.52, SD 1.64), completed validated self-report measures of IGD symptoms, executive dysfunction, and sleep quality. Structural equation modeling was used to test direct and indirect effects with age and gender included as covariates. Results: Of the sample, 2.4% (24/1000) met criteria for IGD (875/1000, 87.5% males), and 22.6% (226/1000) met criteria for chronic sleep reduction. Among those with IGD, 54.2% (542/1000) also experienced chronic sleep reduction. In model A (IGD → Sleep → Executive Dysfunction), IGD symptoms were associated with poorer sleep quality (a=0.32, 95% CI 0.19-0.44), which in turn were associated with greater executive dysfunction (b=0.05, 95% CI 0.01-0.10). The indirect effect was significant (a×b=0.02, 95% CI 0.01-0.04), and sleep quality was a partial mediator. In the reverse model (model B), executive dysfunction was associated with poorer sleep quality (a=0.15, 95% CI 0.06-0.25), which subsequently was associated with higher IGD symptoms (b=0.11, 95% CI 0.07-0.16); indirect effect a×b=0.02, 95% CI 0.01-0.04. Simple slope analysis showed that IGD symptoms were associated only with executive dysfunction at average or poor levels of sleep quality. At higher levels of sleep quality, this relationship was no longer significant. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that sleep quality may be an important intermediary mechanism by which IGD might contribute to executive dysfunction and provide a basis for the development and implementation of strategies that target sleep issues in IGD. Prospective longitudinal research is needed to examine the directionality of the relationships between IGD, sleep quality, and executive dysfunction longitudinally.

There is a notable paucity of research that has evaluated Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) and smartphone overuse prevalence rates in children following the COVID-19 pandemic, including in Australian school-aged samples. The aim of the current study was to examine the prevalence and developmental impacts of IGD and smartphone overuse in children using a self-report survey design. A total of N = 1993 Year 4–8 (10–14 years old, 66.2% male and 31.7% female) students completed the study. Medium to high problematic smartphone use was found in 9.9% of the sample, whilst 4% of children met clinical (1.2%) or sub-clinical (2.7%) levels of IGD, with no differences across age ranges. A pattern of increasing developmental impacts for smartphone overuse and IGD was found. The greatest impacts of overuse and IGD were on emotional development and physical health development. These findings have implications for the increasing need for parent education, access to treatment services, and a focus on early intervention programs in primary school.

There is currently a lack of intervention trials focusing on parent management strategies for Internet gaming disorder (IGD) and smartphone addiction. The aim of the current study (ACTRN12622001355763) was to examine the efficacy of the Tech Diet Parent Program (TDPP), an online parent management video program, in reducing IGD and smartphone addiction symptoms and associated developmental impacts. A total of N = 689 parent participants (with school-aged children) completed baseline measures and 153 parents provided 6-week follow-up data after completing the TDPP. Fifty-nine percent had a child at baseline with high levels of IGD and/or smartphone addiction symptoms. At 6-week follow-up 60% of children with high levels of IGD symptoms and 32% of high levels of smartphone addiction were significantly lower post-program completion. Increased levels of program dosage and compliance were found to be important factors in reductions to IGD and smartphone addiction symptoms, particularly for the high symptom sample. Higher dosage and compliance was also correlated with a significant reduction in the negative developmental impacts of screen use on the children, notably in the sub-domains of physical/social development and education. These findings have implications for utilising online parent management strategies for the prevention and intervention of both IGD and smartphone addiction, either as a stand-alone intervention or in conjunction with established individual treatments like CBT.

Although there is a large research base on the psychological impacts of violent and prosocial visual media, there is little research addressing the impacts of violent and prosocial music, and which facets of the music have the greatest impact. Four experiments tested the impact of lyrics and/or musical tone on aggressive and prosocial behavior, and on underlying psychological processes, using purpose‐built songs to avoid the effect of music‐related confounds. In study one, where mildly aggressive, overtly aggressive and violent lyrics were compared to neutral lyrics, any level of lyrical aggression caused an increase in behavioral aggression, which plateaued for all three aggression conditions. Violent lyrics were better recalled than other lyrics one week later. In studies two‐three no significant effects of lyrics, or of aggressive versus nonaggressive musical tone, were found on aggressive or prosocial behavior. In terms of internal states, violent lyrics increased hostility/hostile cognitions in all studies, and negatively impacted affective state in three studies. Prosocial lyrics decreased hostility/hostile cognitions in three studies, but always in tandem with another factor. Aggressive musical tone increased physiological arousal in two studies and increased negative affect in one. In study four those who listened to violent lyrics drove more aggressively on a simulated drive that included triggers for aggression. Overall, violent lyrics consistently elicited hostility/hostile cognitions and negative affect, but these did not always translate to aggressive behavior. Violent music seems more likely to elicit behavioral aggression when there are aggression triggers and a clear way to aggress. Implications are discussed.