The role of negative and positive urgency in the relationship between craving and symptoms of problematic video game use

Craving and emotion-driven impulsivity dimensions (positive and negative urgency) have been suggested as factors involved in the progression of different potentially problematic behaviors. However, their role in severity of video gaming-related problems remains unclear. This study aims to assess the differential capacity of negative and positive urgency to predict craving and the number of internet gaming disorder (IGD) symptoms endorsed (as a proxy to severity of video gaming problems) in majoritarily non-pathological video-gamers. Convenience sampling was used to recruit 232 Spanish and 222 Ecuadorian frequent video game players. Mixed-effects generalized linear (GMLE) and mediation modeling were used to test moderation and mediation hypotheses regarding the association between urgency, craving, and endorsement of IGD symptoms. Results show that (1) craving largely overlaps with endorsement of IGD symptoms; (2) craving for video games is linked to positive urgency, but not to negative urgency, which reinforces the idea that craving, at least in mostly non-pathological gamers, is a positively valenced expectancy state; (3) positive urgency exerts an indirect effect (mediated by craving) on the number of symptoms endorsed; (4) negative urgency exerts a direct effect on the number of symptoms endorsed; and (5) urgency traits do not interact with craving to predict the number of symptoms. These findings are consistent with the proposal that craving is an emotional state, and that dysregulation of positive affect (as measured by positive urgency) influences its emergence and control. In addition, they support the idea that craving is a central feature in the emergence of IGD symptoms.