Comparison of visual tasks for assessing attentional bias in cannabis users and non-users.

Yildirim S.; Banire B.; Sutherland D.; McGowan Y.; Stewart S.; Klein R.; Meier S. · Addictive behaviors · 2026

**Background & Methods** This review compared three visual attentional bias paradigms—dot probe (DP), eye movement (EM), and MouseView.js (MV)—to assess their sensitivity in detecting cannabis-related attentional biases. Thirty-one participants (16 cannabis users and 15 non-users) completed all three tasks, with linear mixed-effects models analyzing stimulus type, group membership, craving levels, and cannabis use severity. **Key Findings** - Eye movement and MouseView.js tasks demonstrated significant sensitivity to stimulus type, with non-users showing greater attention to neutral images while cannabis users exhibited more evenly distributed attention across cannabis-related and neutral stimuli, suggesting reduced attentional bias with regular use. - A significant stimulus × severity interaction emerged in the EM task, indicating that increased cannabis use severity was associated with reduced attentional differentiation between cannabis-related and neutral cues, suggesting potential habituation or normalized processing of drug-related stimuli. - The dot probe task showed minimal group differences and lacked sensitivity to detect attentional effects, despite its widespread use in addiction research, while MouseView.js demonstrated weaker but generally consistent patterns with eye-tracking results. **Dosage & Administration** Not reported. **Safety & Adverse Effects** Not reported. **Evidence Quality** This study is limited by its small sample size (n=31), which restricts generalizability and statistical power. The cross-sectional design prevents causal inference regarding cannabis use and attentional processing. No information on cannabis use frequency, potency, or THC content was detailed, limiting characterization of exposure. The study represents a methodological comparison rather than clinical assessment, and findings are specific to the laboratory setting using artificial stimuli. The research provides moderate evidence (Level 3) that eye-tracking-based measures outperform reaction-time paradigms for detecting cannabis-related attentional biases, but larger prospective studies with standardized cannabis products and diverse populations are needed to establish clinical utility and validate findings across different user phenotypes.

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