CBT Treatment for Internet Gaming Disorder

Not Applicable

Not yet recruiting

• Conditions: Internet Gaming Disorder; Gaming Disorder
• Interventions: Behavioral: CBT treatment; Behavioral: Wait list control

• Registration Number: NCT05328596
• Lead Sponsor: Sahlgrenska University Hospital

Brief Summary

For most people, gaming is perceived as a positive activity. In some cases, however, gaming may turn into an addiction with consequences for the individual health, quality of life and everyday life. Today, there is a lack of evidence-based interventions to treat this condition, called Gaming Disorder (GD). This study will evaluate a new manual for treatment of GD, divided into a number of modules and based on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). The study is designed as a randomized controlled trial (RCT) and will be conducted at a clinic specialized in the treatment of gambling and gaming addiction.

Participants included in the study will be randomized to one of to groups. The intervention group will receive twelve weeks of individual CBT-treatment while participants allocated to the control group will be put on a twelve-week wait-list.

The hypothesis is that the manual based CBT treatment will result in a greater reduction in symptoms of criteria for GD.

Detailed Description

The study is designed as a two-armed randomized controlled trial. After inclusion, every participant will be offered an overview of the participant´s psychosocial circumstances. Thereafter, the participants will be randomized to one of the two arms.

The main arm includes individual CBT treatment following a module-based manual. The manual includes nine main modules and three optional modules addressing different dimensions of gaming disorder, for example thoughts, emotions, and procrastination. Between every session the participants are working with home assignments, in order to strengthen helpful behaviours. The participants also report amount of time spent on gaming and other activities every week.

Participants randomized to the control arm also report their time spent on gaming and other activities every week.The wait-list control has the same duration as the CBT-arm. After the control-period, participants in the control arm will be offered the same treatment as participants in the intervention arm.

Study Timeline

• Study First Submitted: 2022-03-09
• Study First Submitted QC: 2022-04-06
• Study First Posted: 2022-04-14
• Status Verified: 2025-05
• Last Update Submitted: 2025-05-13
• Last Update Posted: 2025-05-16
• Study Start: 2025-08
• Primary Completion: 2027-12
• Study Completion: 2027-12

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 160

Inclusion Criteria

• Fulfilling 5 out of 9 criteria for IGD according to DSM V
• ≥ 16 years of age
• Can read and speak Swedish fluidly.

Exclusion Criteria

• Somatic or psychiatric disease that is contraindicating or severely complicates the implementation of the intervention (e.g., ongoing psychotic, manic or hypomanic episode or neuropsychiatric condition with severe disability)
• Ongoing increased suicide risk that is considered to make it inappropriate for the patient to participate in the study (based on evaluation at the structured clinical interview)
• have another ongoing psychological treatment with a content similar to that in the current study
• plan to start such treatment during the XX weeks that the study is ongoing or has during the last three weeks started or changed medication for any psychiatric problem.

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
CBT treatment	CBT treatment	The CBT-treatment arm includes a review of the patient´s social conditions and overall health. It also includes manual based Cognitive Behavioural Treatment (CBT) in 10 individual sessions.
Wait list control	Wait list control	The control treatment includes a review of the patient´s social conditions, overall health and psychoeducation.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Internet Gaming Disorder Scale- Short Form (IGDS9-SF)	Up to 24 weeks.	Change in number of diagnostic criteria of Internet Gaming Disorder according to DSM-5. The score ranges from 9 to 45. A higher score indicates more problems related to gaming.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Timeline follow back for gaming (TLFB-GD)	Up to 12 weeks.	Registration of time spent on gaming and other activities during the twelve weeks of treatment.
Gaming Disorder Test (GDT)	Up to 24 weeks.	Measures symptoms of GD according to ICD-10. A higher score indiciate a higher risk of GD.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Clinic for gambling addiction and screen health; 🇸🇪 Gothenburg, Sweden