Evidence map›Paper›PMID 26014667›Full record

ArticleJournal of behavioral addictions2015

Are we overpathologizing everyday life? A tenable blueprint for behavioral addiction research.

Joël Billieux, Adriano Schimmenti, Yasser Khazaal, Pierre Maurage, Alexandre Heeren

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of behavioral addictions, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 311 papers, 11 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
311citing papers in PubMed, 11 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

311 citing papers in PubMed, 11 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

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  9. Work addiction and personality: A meta-analytic study.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2020
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  16. From Exposure to Interaction: Rethinking Assessment of Social Media Use in Adolescents.The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine · 2026
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251 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Joël BillieuxLaboratory for Experimental Psychopathology, Psychological Sciences Research Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain , Louvain-la-Neuve , Belgium.
Adriano SchimmentiFaculty of Human and Social Sciences, UKE - Kore University of Enna , Italy.
Yasser KhazaalAddictology Division, Mental Health and Psychiatry Department, Geneva University Hospitals , Geneva , Switzerland.
Pierre MaurageLaboratory for Experimental Psychopathology, Psychological Sciences Research Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain , Louvain-la-Neuve , Belgium.
Alexandre HeerenLaboratory for Experimental Psychopathology, Psychological Sciences Research Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain , Louvain-la-Neuve , Belgium.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background Behavioral addiction research has been particularly flourishing over the last two decades. However, recent publications have suggested that nearly all daily life activities might lead to a genuine addiction. Methods and aim In this article, we discuss how the use of atheoretical and confirmatory research approaches may result in the identification of an unlimited list of "new" behavioral addictions. Results Both methodological and theoretical shortcomings of these studies were discussed. Conclusions We suggested that studies overpathologizing daily life activities are likely to prompt a dismissive appraisal of behavioral addiction research. Consequently, we proposed several roadmaps for future research in the field, centrally highlighting the need for longer tenable behavioral addiction research that shifts from a mere criteria-based approach toward an approach focusing on the psychological processes involved.

Indexed as

Models, TheoreticalBehavior, AddictiveBehavioral ResearchHumansbehavioral addictionsdiagnosisDSMeveryday behaviorsmental healthpsychopathology

Identifiers

PMID26014667
PMCPMC4627665

What OpenQuestion holds

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Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.