Latent Profiles of Motivational and Regulatory Systems and Their Differential Associations with Problematic Gaming and Smoking Behavior Among Chinese College Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background: Problematic gaming and smoking are prevalent among college students, yet the extent to which they share or differ in associated psychological profiles remains unclear. This study identified latent psychological profiles based on motivational (Behavioral Inhibition System [BIS] and Behavioral Activation System [BAS]) and regulatory (control/impulse) systems, and examined the associative pathways through which anxiety and depression were linked to the relationships between these profiles and the two addictive behaviors. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted between 16 and 29 March 2023. Using convenience sampling, 21 universities were purposively selected from 10 provinces/municipalities in China. A total of 13,643 online questionnaires were returned, and 13,215 valid questionnaires were analyzed after excluding 428 invalid questionnaires. Participants completed measures of BIS/BAS, self-control, problematic gaming, anxiety, depression, smoking behavior, and demographics. Latent profile analysis was used to identify motivational–regulatory profiles. Path analyses estimated indirect associations via anxiety and depression, and moderation analyses examined demographic moderators. All associations were interpreted cross-sectionally. Results: Five distinct profiles were identified: Goal-Oriented (4.44%), Low-Reactive (7.26%), Moderate-Conflict (16.32%), High-Conflict (10.12%), and High-Reactive-Balanced (61.86%). All indirect associations via anxiety and depression were significant for both problematic gaming and smoking. Within problematic gaming, anxiety-related indirect associations were consistently stronger than depression-related ones. Within smoking, anxiety-related and depression-related indirect associations were comparable. Conclusions: These cross-sectional findings indicate that the relative prominence of anxiety- and depression-related pathways may differ within each behavior. Because the two outcomes were measured on different scales, no direct cross-outcome comparison was conducted. Given the cross-sectional design and the measures used, no causal or mechanistic conclusions can be drawn, and the findings should be considered hypothesis-generating.