Reshaping the publication process: Addiction Research & Theory joins Peer Community In Registered Reports

This Editorial outlines two Registered Report (RR) formats offered by Addiction Research and Theory (ART): the ‘traditional’ RR route and the new ‘Peer Community in RR’ initiative. In the former, authors submit their study protocol for pre-study peer-review, allowing for assessment and peer feedback regarding the validity of the research questions and the study methodology prior to data collection (or in the case of secondary data, data analysis). High quality proposals then receive In Principle Acceptance (IPA), meaning that the journal commits to publishing the study regardless of its findings, so long as the protocol is followed appropriately, and an evidence-based interpretation of the results is undertaken. In the latter, authors follow a similar workflow, but submit their study protocol through PCI RR; a community driven initiative that reviews and recommends RRs across the full spectrum of STEM, medicine, social sciences, and the humanities. As a ‘PCI RR friendly journal’, ART commits to publishing any recommended articles which receive acceptance via this route, without the need for additional peer review. We hope that these developments will contribute to addiction science more actively adopting open science principles and help mitigate reproducibility concerns within the published literature.

Exploring Internet Addiction as a Process Addiction

Internet addiction is an emerging global problem with inconsistent nomenclature, diagnostic criteria, and assessment tools. This review explores the complex and conflicting reports of Internet addiction in the literature in an effort to pinpoint the status of this phenomenon. We cite literature related to process additions in order to provide a framework for Internet addiction's potential place amongst diagnosable disorders in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5). Clinical implications of working with people with Internet addiction are emphasized, as is the need for future research.

Addiction Types: A Clinical Sociology Perspective

This paper presents a new approach to categorizing types of addiction, based on 20 years of clinical sociology practice in the United States and the Arab world. The cross-cultural clinical experience of the author enables him to establish a perspective on addiction that focuses on the social-psychological dimensions of the addictive process. Addiction types presented in this paper are based on clinical practice and treatment since 1986. The purpose of this paper is to put types of addiction in perspective and provide an effective diagnostic instrument for making an accurate analysis, successfully treating the addiction, and enhancing the potential for recovery.