Addictions and Social Harms (ASH) Research Team

The ASH Lab broadly examines the etiology of behavioral addictions. Past studies have focused on individual differences and social psychological factors associated with the development of these disorders with a specific emphasis on researching gambling and video gaming disorders. More recent studies have begun to explore mental health issues stemming from problematic financial trading (e.g., day trading, cryptocurrency trading). The ASH Lab is directed by Dr. Devin J. Mills, Assistant Professor in the Department of Community, Family, and Addiction Sciences at Texas Tech University.

Short Biography

Current Position

I am an Assistant Professor in the Department of Community, Family, and Addiction Sciences at Texas Tech University, and an Associate Affiliate of the Center for Gambling Studies at Rutgers University. For the past 5+ years, my work has focused on video gaming and gambling disorders.

Education and Training

I completed a BS in Psychology (2011) as well as an MA in Education (2013) at Edgewood College in Madison, WI. Subsequently, I moved to Canada and completed my PhD in Educational Psychology (2017) at McGill University in Montreal. Finally, from 2017 to 2019, I advanced my training as a Postdoctoral Research Associate within the Center for Gambling Studies at Rutgers University.

Mentoring Approach

My goal with mentoring is to develop applied researchers and prepare them for a career in academia, policy, or industry. I meet at least monthly with my students to discuss lab projects that will include their dissertation projects. I expect ASH Lab students to be collaborative, organized, and productive regardless of their career goals. Students should expect to submit 1-2 conference presentations as well as 1-2 manuscripts per year. In short, every student must carry their weight as we are all working together to advance lab projects.

I am always looking for new graduate students interested in researching behavioral addictions. Although much of my work has focused on video gaming and gambling disorders, I welcome anyone interested in studying addictive behaviors.

Origins

 
I am is originally from Milwaukee, WI. I love traveling and soccer and am a little bit of a foodie.

Current Research Projects

• Emotion regulation and addictive behaviors
  • Drawing from self-determination theory, my colleagues and I are examining the link between emotion regulation (defined from a motivational perspective) and addictive behaviors.
• Interpersonal relationship quality and addictive behaviors
  • We are exploring the following research questions. First, do assumptions embedded within self-determination theory help us understand the poor relationship quality reported by those struggling with addiction? Second, which facet of attachment theory (e.g., anxious, avoidant, or a combination) will help us understand addictive behaviors?
• Problematic financial trading (e.g., day trading, OTC trading, cryptocurrency trading)
  • Gambling is defined as placing something of value at risk in hopes of gaining something of greater value in return. However, we have often excluded financial trading from this definition because it is perceived as an “investing” versus gambling. Nonetheless, research has found a link between specific trading behaviors and problem gambling. This project attempts to define “problematic financial trading behaviors” and assess its unique link to mental health problems beyond that of problem gambling.
• Examining the link between life-threatening behaviors (e.g., non-suicidal self-injury and suicidal behaviors) and behavioral addictions
  • Research has shown that behavioral addictions are associated with life-threatening behaviors. However, only a subset of those struggling with behavioral addiction report engaging in life-threatening behaviors. As such, what explains the difference between those who do and do not report life-threatening behaviors among those struggling with behavioral addictions? Furthermore, at a broader level, what mechanism explains the relationship between behavioral addictions and life-threatening behaviors?

Recent Publications

Mills, D. J., Marchica, L., Keough, M. T., & Derevensky, J. (in press). Exploring differences in substance use among emerging adults at-risk for problem gambling, and/or problem video gaming. International Gambling Studies. https://doi.org/10.1080/14459795.2020.1752768.

Mills, D. J. & Allen, J. J. (2020). Self-determination theory, Internet Gaming Disorder, and the mediating role of self-control. Computers in Human Behavior, 105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2019.106209  

Marchica, L., Mills, D. J., Keough, M. T., Derevensky, J. (2020). Exploring differences among video game users with and without depression: Contrasting emotion regulation and mindfulness. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking 23(2), 119-125.   https://doi.org/10.1089/cyber.2019.0451

Mills, D. J. (2019). Does dispositional mindfulness moderate how individuals engage in their passions? An investigation into video games. Leisure Studies, 38(5), 651-665. https://doi.org/10.1080/02614367.2019.1633682 

Mills, D. J., & Nower, L. (2019). Preliminary findings on cryptocurrency trading among regular gamblers: A new risk for problem gambling?. Addictive Behaviors, 92, 136–140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2019.01.005 

Marchica, L., Mills, D. J., Derevensky, J., Montreuil, T. (2019). The role of emotion regulation in etiology of video gaming and gambling disorder: A systematic review. Canadian Journal of Addiction. https://doi.org/10.1097/CXA.0000000000000070 

Marchica, L. A., Mills, D. J., Keough, M. T., Montreuil, T. C., & Derevensky, J. L. (2019). Emotion regulation in emerging adult gamblers and its mediating role with depressive symptomology. Journal of Affective Disorders, 258(1), 74-82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2019.07.078  

Li, W., Mills, D. J., & Nower, L. (2019). Loot boxes: An emerging risk for gambling and video gaming disorder. Addictive Behaviors, 97, 27–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2019.05.016 

Boke, B. N., Mills, D. J., Mettler, J., & Heath, N. L. (2019) Stress and coping patterns in university. Journal of College Student Development. https://muse.jhu.edu/article/715312/pdf 

Mettler, J., Mills, D. J., & Heath, N. L. (2019). Problematic gaming and subjective well-being: How does mindfulness play a role?. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-018-9978-5