Title: How brain morphology reveals the severity of excessive internet use

Abstract

As previous studies have mainly focused on the reward system and the corresponding brain regions, the relationship between brain morphology and excessive internet use (EIU) was not clear, and the purpose of the study was to investigate whether brain regions other than the reward system were associated with EIU. Data were acquired from 131 excessive internet users. Psychological measures included internet use, life quality, personality, mental illness symptoms, impulsivity, and thought suppression. The brain was scanned with 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and 6 types of brain morphological indexes were calculated. Lasso regression methods were used to select the predictors. Stepwise linear regression methods were used to build the models and verify the model. The variables remaining in the model were left precentral (curve), left superior temporal (surface area), right cuneus (folding index), right rostral anterior cingulate (folding index) and harm avoidance. The independent variable was the EIU score of the worst week in the past year. The study found that brain morphological indexes other than the reward system, including the left precentral (curve), the left superior temporal (surface area), the right cuneus (folding index) and the right rostral anterior cingulate (folding index), can predict the severity of EIU, suggesting extensive changes in the brain. The study conducted a whole-brain data analysis and concluded that the changes in certain brain regions were more predictive than the reward system and psychological measures or more important for EIU.