Reduced Hedonic Capacity and Problem Video Gaming Severity: An Exploratory Study Among Chinese University Students

Abstract

Limited research has examined the relationship between reward-related factors, such as anhedonia, and problem video gaming, which is an emerging behavioral health concern among youth and young adults. This study examined the association between anhedonia and problem video gaming severity and tested whether anhedonia moderated the associations of gaming-related cognitions and gaming motives with problem video gaming. Cross-sectional survey data were collected from a convenience sample of 320 students at one public university in China (Mean age = 19.07, SD = 1.31, 56.88% female). Participants completed standardized self-report measures of problem video gaming severity, video gaming frequency, gaming-related cognitions, gaming motives, mental distress symptoms, and anhedonia. Regression analysis found that lower capacity to experience pleasure (β = −0.17, 95% CI [−0.25, −0.08], p < 0.001) was associated with greater problem video gaming severity after controlling for sex, video gaming frequency, gaming-related cognitions, gaming motives, and mental distress. Hedonic capacity also significantly moderated the associations of various maladaptive gaming-related cognitions (βs = −0.013 and −0.020; ps < 0.001) and gaming motives (βs = −0.043 to −0.032; ps ≤ 0.016) with problem video gaming severity. The associations of gaming-related cognitions involving social comfort and emotional appraisal—as well as escape, social, competition, skill development, and fantasy motives with problem video gaming—were stronger among students with lower hedonic capacity. These findings suggest that reduced capacity to experience pleasure may represent a distinct reward-related correlate of problem video gaming and may intensify the associations between cognitive and motivational factors and problem video gaming.