Developmental Pathways of Behavioural Addictions in Children and Adolescents: Mechanisms, Risk, and Resilience

Addictive behaviors frequently emerge during childhood and adolescence, periods marked by critical neurobiological, cognitive, and social development. The brain’s reward systems, self-regulatory capacities, and social environments are particularly malleable during these stages, making them vulnerable to the onset of behavioral addictions. These include gambling, gaming, problematic internet/social media and pornography use, which can have lasting impacts on mental health, academic performance, and social functioning. Cross-cultural variations in prevalence and expression further highlight the need for a developmentally informed, global perspective.This Research Topic brings together work on the onset, course, and mechanisms of behavioral addictions from childhood through young adulthood, viewed through a developmental psychopathology lens: how normal developmental processes tip into disorder, and back toward resilience. We welcome longitudinal, epidemiological, neuroimaging, cognitive, and clinical studies that clarify how they emerge, who is most vulnerable, and how they relate to co-occurring mental health disorders. We particularly welcome submissions addressing clinical intervention strategies, service access, and treatment approaches, alongside mechanistic and developmental research. The aim is to advance understanding of risk and resilience that can inform earlier identification and developmentally appropriate care.This Research Topic aims to elucidate the onset, progression, and underlying mechanisms of behavioral addictions in young populations from early childhood through young adulthood (up to age 26), by: • Identifying factors that influence vulnerability or resilience.• Clarifying developmental trajectories across childhood and adolescence.• Translating mechanistic insights into developmentally appropriate prevention and treatment strategies.We invite submissions organized around three core themes:• Mechanisms and developmental trajectories: Neurobiological, cognitive, and social processes underlying addictive behaviors (e.g., reward sensitivity, impulse control, peer influence), and how these unfold across developmental stages. • Vulnerability and resilience, including co-occurring conditions: Factors that increase risk (e.g., trauma, socioeconomic status, gender differences, cultural context) or promote resilience (e.g., family support, coping strategies), and interactions with co-occurring mental health disorders (e.g., depression, anxiety, ADHD). • Intervention and prevention: Evidence-based approaches for early detection, harm reduction, and treatment, including digital tools, school-based programs, and family interventions, and youth-focused, appropriate mental health services, with attention to accessibility and social inequalities in mental health care.Topic Editor Marc Potenza declares consultancy work with Boehringer Ingelheim, Neurofinity and a patent application with Novartis filed jointly with Yale University. He has also received research support from Mohegan Sun. The other Topic Editors report no competing interests related to this Research Topic.This Research Topic complements the 28th Annual Global International Society of Addiction Medicine (ISAM) Congress, in Rotterdam organized by the International Society of Addiction Medicine, taking place from October 1st to October 3rd, 2026.If you were not directly invited by the Topic Editors but wish to submit, you are welcome to do so; however, please contact us at childandadolescentpsychiatry@frontiersin.org before submitting and wait for our confirmation that your manuscript is within scope. Topic editors: Sophia Achab, Marc N Potenza, Yasser Khazaal Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/84393/developmental-pathways-of-behavioural-addictions-in-children-and-adolescents-mechanisms-risk-and-resilience