Efficacy of Emotional Working Memory Training on Cognitive Emotion Regulation and Risky Decision-Making in University Students with Problematic Internet Use: a Randomised Controlled Trial

Problematic Internet Use (PIU) has been linked to emotional distress, cognitive impairments, and diminished academic performance among university students. The present randomised controlled trial examined the efficacy of emotional working memory training (eWMT) in enhancing cognitive emotion regulation strategies (CERS) and risky decision-making in individuals with PIU. Following baseline assessment, eligible participants were randomly assigned to either an experimental group (n = 15; eWMT) or a control group (n = 15; feature-matching training). Both groups completed 20 training sessions. Post-test and one-month follow-up results revealed that eWMT led to significant improvements in PIU symptoms, risky decision-making and reductions in maladaptive CERS, while no significant changes were observed for adaptive CERS. These findings highlight eWMT as a promising cognitive-affective intervention for improving executive and emotional regulation processes in students with PIU.