Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Interventions in Treating Behavioral Addictions
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Mentor Information
Dr. Hector Gomez
Description
Behavioral addictions are non-substance compulsive disorders creating urges to engage with actions such as gambling and internet gaming disorder (IGD). Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) use conscious awareness of the present to improve both mental and physical health. However, their long-term effectiveness remains unclear compared to other therapies. This literature review explores how the use of MBIs, compared to other therapeutic techniques, help adults and adolescents struggling with behavioral addictions. A systematic screening of peer-reviewed articles was conducted using PubMed. Of 135 articles published from 2021-2026, “mindfulness”/“meditation”, “behavioral addiction”/”gambling”/“gaming disorder”/“internet”, and “long-term”/“relapse”, only studies that explored MBIs for behavioral addiction with experimental designs such as randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included, excluding studies published before 2021, irrelevant, or lacking empirical evidence. After screening for methodological quality, 32 articles were selected for this review. MBIs reduce addiction severity through improved emotional regulation and craving control as both standalone and adjunctive treatment across multiple behavioral addictions, supported by neurobiological evidence showing strengthened frontostriatal connectivity and greater reductions in DSM-5 scores compared to progressive muscle relaxation. RCTs targeting IGD report significant short-term outcomes with a reduction in relapse risk at 3 to 6-month follow-ups. Current evidence calls for larger, demographically diverse RCTs with active control groups and long-term follow-up to standardize MBIs in clinical practice. MBIs result in decreased levels of addiction behavior and craving compared to other interventions such as CBT or Progressive Muscle Relaxation, because they focus directly on the relapse processes that support longer-term recovery.
Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Interventions in Treating Behavioral Addictions
Behavioral addictions are non-substance compulsive disorders creating urges to engage with actions such as gambling and internet gaming disorder (IGD). Mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) use conscious awareness of the present to improve both mental and physical health. However, their long-term effectiveness remains unclear compared to other therapies. This literature review explores how the use of MBIs, compared to other therapeutic techniques, help adults and adolescents struggling with behavioral addictions. A systematic screening of peer-reviewed articles was conducted using PubMed. Of 135 articles published from 2021-2026, “mindfulness”/“meditation”, “behavioral addiction”/”gambling”/“gaming disorder”/“internet”, and “long-term”/“relapse”, only studies that explored MBIs for behavioral addiction with experimental designs such as randomized controlled trials (RCTs) were included, excluding studies published before 2021, irrelevant, or lacking empirical evidence. After screening for methodological quality, 32 articles were selected for this review. MBIs reduce addiction severity through improved emotional regulation and craving control as both standalone and adjunctive treatment across multiple behavioral addictions, supported by neurobiological evidence showing strengthened frontostriatal connectivity and greater reductions in DSM-5 scores compared to progressive muscle relaxation. RCTs targeting IGD report significant short-term outcomes with a reduction in relapse risk at 3 to 6-month follow-ups. Current evidence calls for larger, demographically diverse RCTs with active control groups and long-term follow-up to standardize MBIs in clinical practice. MBIs result in decreased levels of addiction behavior and craving compared to other interventions such as CBT or Progressive Muscle Relaxation, because they focus directly on the relapse processes that support longer-term recovery.
