Introduction: The main aims of the current study were (i) to explore the overlap between Internet gaming disorder (IGD) and gaming disorder (GD) diagnoses, (ii) to identify clinical characteristics in clinical settings, and (iii) to measure psychometric properties of the Gaming Disorder Scale for Adolescents (GADIS-A). Methods: 222 adolescents who were followed up within a tertiary-care mental health hospital, were included (IGD/GD group [n = 111], clinical comparison group [n = 90], healthy controls [n = 21]). The tools used were the GADIS-A, Internet Gaming Disorder Scale – Short-Form, The Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-36), Children’s Global Assessment Scale, and a semistructured interview for DSM-5 diagnoses. Results: The overlap rate of IGD and GD is 73%. Comorbid ADHD diagnoses were more commonly found in the IGD group compared to the clinical comparison group. Patients who met GD and IGD diagnoses revealed higher scores in DERS-36. Turkish GADIS-A Item-total score correlation coefficients were between 0.627 and 0.860. In the sample, there was a high level of correlation between the number of DSM-5 and ICD-11 diagnostic criteria met and GADIS-A scale scores. The Cronbach’s alphas if item deleted ranged between 0.942 and 0.954. In addition, treatment refusal was more frequent in the IGD group than in the clinical comparison group. Conclusion: The GADIS-A had good to excellent psychometric properties in Turkish adolescents. Despite having a stricter diagnostic criterion, GD overlapped with IGD in a clinical population.

This study examined how comorbid Cognitive Disengagement Syndrome (CDS) and Specific Learning Disorder (SLD) shape neurocognitive and behavioral profiles of children with ADHD. The sample included 844 children aged 6-16, categorized into ADHD-only, ADHD+CDS, ADHD+SLD, and ADHD+SLD+CDS. Cognitive performance was assessed with the WISC-R, and behavioral symptoms with the Teacher Report Form. Group differences were analyzed using ANCOVA, adjusting for age, inattention, and internalizing symptoms. Children with CDS showed higher inattention, internalizing symptoms, and obsessive-compulsive traits than those without CDS. By contrast, SLD was linked to lower oppositional and aggressive behaviors. SLD groups performed worse on WISC-R verbal subtests. Compared with CDS, SLD showed lower Arithmetic and Vocabulary scores, underscoring SLD-related verbal and working memory impairment. After adjustment, CDS did not exhibit distinct cognitive profile. Boys with CDS scored lower on the Information subtest than boys with ADHD-only. Performance IQ and non-verbal subtests did not differ across groups. The overlap of CDS and SLD raises concerns about misattributing SLD-related deficits to CDS. Clinically, these findings highlight the need to rule out SLD whenever CDS is observed. Interventions should be tailored, with educational support prioritized in SLD, attention- and emotion-focused strategies in CDS, and integrated approaches when both are present.

The aim of our study is to concurrently examine, within the same structural model, the effects of social cognitive functions, empathy, emotional regulation difficulties, interpersonal competence and smartphone addiction on adolescents who display phubbing behavior and those who are being phubbed. A cross-sectional study was carried out with the participation of 305 adolescents between the ages of 16 and 18. The Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale—Short Form, Interpersonal Reactivity Index, Interpersonal Competence Scale, Generic Scale of Phubbing and Generic Scale of Being Phubbed, Smartphone Addiction Scale and Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test were administered to the participants. Smartphone addiction was positively associated with phubbing behavior (β = 0.775, p < 0.001), whereas interpersonal competence was negatively associated with phubbing (β = −0.145, p < 0.001). A significant positive indirect association between emotional regulation difficulties and phubbing behavior via smartphone addiction was observed (β = 0.273, p < 0.001). Interpersonal reactivity was positively associated with being phubbed (β = 0.203, p = 0.001), whereas social cognition was not significantly associated with either outcome. Our findings suggest that different socio-cognitive competencies and smartphone addiction may be associated with phubbing in adolescents, and that these associations may differ between phubbing behavior and being phubbed.