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Abstract Background According to the validation literature on items of Young’s Internet Addiction Test (IAT), this study rephrased disputable items to improve the psychometric properties of this Chinese version of IAT and identify the presence of differential item function (DIF) among demographic and Internet use factors; detect the effect of demographic and Internet use factors on IAT after adjusting for DIF. Methods An online questionnaire was distributed to college students in Zhe Jiang province in two stage. The 1st phase study collected 384 valid responses to examine the quality of IAT items by using Rasch Model analysis and exploring factor analysis (EFA). The online questionnaire was modified according to the 1st phase study and distributed online for the 2nd phase study which collected a total of 1131 valid responses. The 2nd phase study applied confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and a multiple indicator multiple causes (MIMIC) model to verify the construct of IAT, potential effect of covariates on IAT latent factors, as well as the effect of differential item functioning (DIF). Results Rasch model analysis in the 1st phase study indicated a 5-point rating scale was performed better, no sever misfit was found on item. The overall property of Chinese version IAT with the 5-point scale was good to excellent person and item separation (2.66 and 6.86). A three-factor model was identified by EFA. In the 2nd phase study, IAT 13 were detected with DIF for gender in MIMIC model. After correcting DIF effect, the significant demographic and Internet use factors on IAT were time spent online per day, year 3, year 2, general users. Conclusion Item improvement was efficient that the problematic items found in literature was performed good in this study. The overall psychometric property of this Chinese version IAT was good with limited DIF effect in one item. Item improvement on IAT13 was encouraged in the future study to avoid gender bias and benefit for epidemiology on PIU.

Data which were collected using Internet Addiction Test (IAT) and Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) tools from 984 randomly sampled tertiary education students in Malawi is described in this paper. The questionnaires were designed on Google forms, but both online and printed forms were employed to enhance response rate. Stored in Mendeley data repository, the data set includes basic demographic information about study participants, frequency of internet and social media use, and transformed variables linked to cases of common mental disorder. Although the data was primarily collected to assess the link between internet addiction and mental health among college students in Malawi, it is a potential source for the several psychometric studies. Moreover, the presented SRQ-20 data should also be useful for measuring anxiety and studying psychiatric symptoms and personality type among the college students. The study design, materials and methods used when collecting this data may also be replicated in other related psychological research studies in the educational field.

Background: According to the validation literature on items of Young's Internet Addiction Test (IAT), this study rephrased disputable items to improve the psychometric properties of this Chinese version of IAT and identify the presence of differential item function (DIF) among demographic and Internet use factors; detect the effect of demographic and Internet use factors on IAT after adjusting for DIF.Methods: An online questionnaire was distributed to college students in Zhe Jiang province in two stage. The 1st phase study collected 384 valid responses to examine the quality of IAT items by using Rasch Model analysis and exploring factor analysis (EFA). The online questionnaire was modified according to the 1st phase study and distributed online for the 2nd phase study which collected a total of 1131 valid responses. The 2nd phase study applied confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and a multiple indicator multiple causes (MIMIC) model to verify the construct of IAT, potential effect of covariates on IAT latent factors, as well as the effect of differential item functioning (DIF).Results: Rasch model analysis in the 1st phase study indicated a 5-point rating scale was performed better, no sever misfit was found on item. The overall property of Chinese version IAT with the 5-point scale was good to excellent person and item separation (2.66 and 6.86). A three-factor model was identified by EFA. In the 2nd phase study, IAT 13 were detected with DIF for gender in MIMIC model. After correcting DIF effect, the significant demographic and Internet use factors on IAT were time spent online per day, year 3, year 2, general users.Conclusion: Item improvement was efficient that the problematic items found in literature was performed good in this study. The overall psychometric property of this Chinese version IAT was good with limited DIF effect in one item. Item improvement on IAT13 was encouraged in the future study to avoid gender bias and benefit for epidemiology on PIU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was designed to survey time spent accessing electronic media using the Japanese version of the Media Activity Form （MAF） ─ Parent Report and Youth Self-Re)port, and to create standardized values for the impact of media use on daily life. Participants were 100 parents with children aged 6-10, and 300 children aged 11-18 and their parents. The parents responded to the MAF Parent Report and the children aged 11-18 responded to the MAF Youth Self-Report. We surveyed the average time spent on weekdays, Saturdays, and Sundays for each of 11 types of media including social networking service （SNS）, games, and YouTube, and conducted an analysis of variance on media usage time by gender and day of the week for children aged 6-10, and by parent and children, gender, and day of the week for children aged 11-18. Regarding the impact of media use on daily life, including whether they feel they spend too much time on media, we also conducted an analysis of variance by age and gender for parents, and a t-test between genders for children. As standard values for the life impacts, we calculated T-scores by age groups （6-10 and 11-18）. Reliability was examined by Cronbach’s alpha coefficient, and criterion-related validity was examined by the correlation coefficient with the Internet Addiction Test （IAT）. There was no gender difference in media usage time in the age group of 6-10. We found significant gender differences in the age group of 11-18, with boys spending more time on games and girls spending more time on messaging and SNS. Parents with children aged 11-18 had significantly higher negative im)pacts than parents with children aged 6-10. The alpha coefficients of the scales were 0.911 for the MAF Parent Report and 0.900 for the MAF Youth Self-Report, indicating sufficient internal consistency. Both scales had significant positive correlations with the IAT at r0.5, indicating no validity problem. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Problematic internet use (PIU) has generally been strongly associated with depression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, especially among adolescents, with resulting consequences for their health. This study explores the pattern of internet use, and the prevalence of PIU before and during the COVID-19 lockdown, as well as the causes, effects, and potential mitigation measures in respect of PIU during the lockdown, among high school students in Ibadan, Nigeria. A structured questionnaire, including a 20-question internet addiction test (IAT), was administered during the COVID-19 lockdown to 440 adolescents enrolled in high schools. Of these adolescents, 7.7% appeared from their responses to have had PIU before the COVID-19 lockdown period. However, 64.3% of respondents appeared from their responses to have had PIU during the COVID-19 lockdown period. The main reasons for the increased PIU were boredom, loneliness, idleness, pleasure gained from internet use, physical isolation, and the need for information and communication. The effects of PIU reported among the adolescents included reduced family intimacy, poor academic performance, loss of concentration, as well as internet abuse and risky sexual behaviour. To mitigate PIU among high school students, parental monitoring of adolescents, and their internet access and use, should be promoted. In addition, programmes should be organised by the media and academic institutions to keep adolescents engaged in productive tasks.

Data which were collected using Internet Addiction Test (IAT) and Self-Reporting Questionnaire (SRQ-20) tools from 984 randomly sampled tertiary education students in Malawi is described in this paper. The questionnaires were designed on Google forms, but both online and printed forms were employed to enhance response rate. Stored in Mendeley data repository, the data set includes basic demographic information about study participants, frequency of internet and social media use, and transformed variables linked to cases of common mental disorder. Although the data was primarily collected to assess the link between internet addiction and mental health among college students in Malawi, it is a potential source for the several psychometric studies. Moreover, the presented SRQ-20 data should also be useful for measuring anxiety and studying psychiatric symptoms and personality type among the college students. The study design, materials and methods used when collecting this data may also be replicated in other related psychological research studies in the educational field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Internet usage is tremendously growing, misuse and overuse called Internet Addiction (IA); the latter may lead to negative results, affect people's psychological, social, physical, and academic performance, especially students. IA is a growing problem worldwide among young people, including university students. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of IA among university students and identifying associated factors. Subjects and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 559 students of the first and third stages in four randomly selected colleges in the University of Kerbala. Data collection was done from 26th March to 29th April 2018. A self-administered questionnaire was used based on Arabic versions of the Internet Addiction Test (IAT). Analysis of the data was done by using SPSS version 20. Results: The prevalence of IA was 68.7% (95% confidence interval (CI): 65.1%-72.5%) and severe IA was10.2 % (95% CI: 7.7% -12.7%). IA levels were significantly associated with male gender, excessive Internet use, lower sleeping hours, sleeping late, difficulty awakening in the morning, and lower academic performance (P-value < 0.05). Further, internet addicts showed a higher prevalence of headaches, backache, and hand pain. Conclusion: High level of IA was recognized among university students. IA levels were significantly higher among males. There was a positive association between IA and excessive internet usage, poor sleep habits, and lower academic performance. Higher IA level was associated with a higher prevalence of backache, headache, eye pain or redness, and pain in the hands because of sitting online for long periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The internet is an integral part of today's life; therefore, the risk of internet addiction is very high. The current consequences of internet addiction are not comparable to those of other types of addiction. However, internet addiction may be a serious problem in the future. For this reason, this issue should be addressed today. AIMS: The primary objective of the study was to assess the differences in internet addiction between males and females in a sample of university students in the Slovak Republic. Differences were assessed in the total internet addiction score, as well as in the individual sub-scales of the Internet Addiction Test (IAT) (Salience, Excessive Use, Neglect Work, Anticipation, Lack of Control, Neglect Social Life). METHODS: A questionnaire survey was conducted in 2020. The objective of the study was mainly achieved using the non-parametric Mann-Whitney test. SAMPLE: The population was selected in the form of a non-random sample and consists of 1612 responses from students of Slovak universities. Data obtained using the standardized IAT scale was included in the analyses. RESULTS: The overall rate of internet addiction in the research sample was not critical, while increased scores were found in the Neglect Work, Anticipation, and Lack of Control sub-scales. Significant differences were identified in the areas of Salience, Excessive Use, Neglect Work, and Neglect Social Life. In general, male students showed a higher rate of internet addiction. CONCLUSIONS: Internet addiction in high-risk population groups should be systematically monitored. The lifestyle of university students may be a predictor of these addictions, which may be a serious problem in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the onset of Web 2.0 technologies, dynamic user-generated content and growth of social media was seen in the society. Social Networking Sites (SNS) have become an inevitable part of our life. Despite its numerous advantages, uncontrolled extensive usage of social media has resulted in increasing the levels of addiction among the youth. Through quantitative methodology, the present study delineates social media usage among the youth, its levels of addiction and ill- effects caused due to social media usage. A self-designed questionnaire comprising of items from the Social Media Addiction Scale (SMAS) and the Internet Addiction Test (IAT) was used to gauge SNS addiction among youth. 50% of the research participants were found to be 'somewhat' addicted to social media platforms which pertains to the threshold of addiction and if preventive measures are not taken it may lead to extreme addiction. 73.3% of the population claimed deteriorating academic performance due to high SNS usage. 63.3% participants showed compulsive behavior when told to part from SNS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aimed to identify factor structure of a bilingual version (English and Malay) of Internet Addiction Test, a measure of severity on pathological Internet use (PIU); examine the measurement invariant by adding the socio-demographic and Internet use variables as covariates. Method: Pencil-paper questionnaire was distributed to undergraduates in Univerisiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). A total of 1120 valid responses were collected. EFA and CFA were first applied to identify the factor structure of IAT. Multiple indicator multiple cause (MIMIC) model was used to examine the differential item functioning (DIF) and the effect of covariates on the latent factors. Result: A four-factor model demonstrated moderate fit to the data for 17-item of IAT with significant high factor loading. Comparison of MIMIC model with and without DIF indicated that the most meaningful and significant DIF effect were on three items showing direct effect from Chinese to IAT18, IAT19 and IAT20. By controlling the DIF effect, some covariates still present the significant impact on latent factors of IAT, which were female, time spent online, effect on study, years of Internet use experience, general users, other users and Chinese. Conclusions: the risk factors of PIU were male, time spent online, years of Internet use experiences, game users, SNS users, perceived less effect on study. More research is encouraged to examine the racial group difference, including the risk of PIU and item response bias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The most commonly used instrument for the research and treatment of excessive internet use is Young’s Internet Addiction Test (IAT). While the IAT has been translated to several languages (including Persian) and has demonstrated good psychometric properties across several independent studies, there is still a room for alternative assessment instruments. This study reports a validation of the Persian version of the Problematic Internet Use Questionnaire (PIUQ). Method: A sample (n = 296) from Kerman, Iran was administered the translated Persian version of the PIUQ as well as the Persian version of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Loneliness scale, Satisfaction With Life scale, and questions related to use of technology and the internet. Results: Analyses using confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses demonstrated that the Persian version of the PIUQ had good internal reliability and concurrent validity (with loneliness and satisfaction with life), but they also had an alternative factor structure that did not support the original factor structure. Conclusion: The Persian version of the PIUQ produced adequate psychometric properties (internal reliability and concurrent validity), but care should be taken in the interpretation of the factor structure.

This study examined the psychometric properties of a bilingual version of the Internet Addicion Test (IA) (Malay and English) in a sample of undergraduate students. A total of 104 students from Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) participated in this study. Result of Rasch Model analysis on the items of IAT showed that the 6-point rating scale was the optimal and the unidimensional structure of IAT was confirmed. The evidences provided by Rasch Model analysis supported that IAT was a good and reliable instrument to examine psychopathological internet use (PIU). The undelying construct of IAT was examined by EFA, which found a six-factor model as the best fit model (tolerance, time management problems & neglect of duty, neglect of social life, problematic use & reality substitute, withdraw & emotional conflict, intentionally concealing behavior, and lack of control). Time spent online was found to be significantly correlated to each factor subscales of IAT, but weakly. Factors of lack of control and problematic use & reality substitute were two salient underlying structures of IAT in this study. A bigger sample size was suggested to confirm the underlying construct by using CFA in the future study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The most commonly used instrument for the research and treatment of excessive internet use is Young's Internet Addiction Test (IAT). While the IAT has been translated to several languages (including Persian) and has demonstrated good psychometric properties across several independent studies, there is still a room for alternative assessment instruments. This study reports a validation of the Persian version of the Problematic Internet Use Questionnaire (PIUQ). Method: A sample (n = 296) from Kerman, Iran was administered the translated Persian version of the PIUQ as well as the Persian version of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Loneliness scale, Satisfaction With Life scale, and questions related to use of technology and the internet. Results: Analyses using confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses demonstrated that the Persian version of the PIUQ had good internal reliability and concurrent validity (with loneliness and satisfaction with life), but they also had an alternative factor structure that did not support the original factor structure. Conclusion: The Persian version of the PIUQ produced adequate psychometric properties (internal reliability and concurrent validity), but care should be taken in the interpretation of the factor structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study is the investigation of the potential role of negative relating to others, perceived loneliness, sadness, and anxiety, as mediators of the association between early parental bonding and adult Internet Addiction (IA). The factorial structure of the Internet Addiction Test (IAT) and the prevalence rates of it in a Greek sample will also be investigated. A total of 774 participants were recruited from a Technological Education Institute (mean age=20.2, SD =2.8) and from high school technical schools (mean age=19.9, SD =7.4). The IAT was used to measure the degree of problematic Internet use behaviors; the Parental Bonding Instrument was used to assess one's recalled parenting experiences during the first 16 years of life; the shortened Person's Relating to Others Questionnaire was used to assess one's negative (i.e. maladaptive) relating to others (NRO). Both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses confirmed the three-factor structure of the IAT. Only 1.0% of the sample was severely addicted to the Internet. The mediated effects of only the NRO and sadness were confirmed. Negative relating to others was found to fully mediate the effect of both the father's optimal parenting and affectionless control on IA, whereas sadness was found to fully mediate the effect of the mother's optimal parenting on IA. Overall, the results suggest that parenting style has an indirect impact on IA, through the mediating role of negative relating to others or sadness in later life. Both family-based and individual-based prevention and intervention efforts may reduce the incidence of IA. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Internet addiction disorder (IAD) has raised widespread public health concerns. In this study, we used a gambling task to simulate extreme win/lose situations to find the reward/punishment sensitivities after continuous wins and losses. FMRI data were collected from 16 IAD subjects (21.4±3.1years) and 15 healthy controls (HC, 22.1±3.6years). Group comparisons showed higher superior frontal gyrus activations after continuous wins for IAD subjects than for HC. The brain activities in IAD subjects were not disturbed by their losses. In addition, IAD participants showed decreased posterior cingulate activation compared to HC after continuous losses. These results indicated that IAD participants showed preference to win while neglecting their losses. Therefore they engaged less executive endeavor to control their frustration after continuous losses. Taken together, we concluded that IAD subjects showed enhanced sensitivity to win and decreased sensitivity to lose. This can help us understand why IAD subjects continue playing online even after noticing the severe negative consequences of their behaviors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Internet Addiction Test (IAT) is the most widely used questionnaire to screen for problematic Internet use. Nevertheless, its factorial structure is still debated, which complicates comparisons among existing studies. Most previous studies were performed with students or community samples despite the probability of there being more problematic Internet use among users of specific applications, such as online gaming or gambling. Objective: To assess the factorial structure of a modified version of the IAT that addresses specific applications, such as video games and online poker. Methods: Two adult samples--one sample of Internet gamers (n=920) and one sample of online poker players (n=214)--were recruited and completed an online version of the modified IAT. Both samples were split into two subsamples. Two principal component analyses (PCAs) followed by two confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) were run separately. Results: The results of principal component analysis indicated that a one-factor model fit the data well across both samples. In consideration of the weakness of some IAT items, a 17-item modified version of the IAT was proposed. Conclusions: This study assessed, for the first time, the factorial structure of a modified version of an Internet-administered IAT on a sample of Internet gamers and a sample of online poker players. The scale seems appropriate for the assessment of such online behaviors. Further studies on the modified 17-item IAT version are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Internet Addiction Test (IAT) is the most widely used questionnaire to screen for problematic Internet use. Nevertheless, its factorial structure is still debated, which complicates comparisons among existing studies. Most previous studies were performed with students or community samples despite the probability of there being more problematic Internet use among users of specific applications, such as online gaming or gambling., Objective: To assess the factorial structure of a modified version of the IAT that addresses specific applications, such as video games and online poker., Methods: Two adult samples-one sample of Internet gamers (n=920) and one sample of online poker players (n=214)-were recruited and completed an online version of the modified IAT. Both samples were split into two subsamples. Two principal component analyses (PCAs) followed by two confirmatory factor analyses (CFAs) were run separately., Results: The results of principal component analysis indicated that a one-factor model fit the data well across both samples. In consideration of the weakness of some IAT items, a 17-item modified version of the IAT was proposed., Conclusions: This study assessed, for the first time, the factorial structure of a modified version of an Internet-administered IAT on a sample of Internet gamers and a sample of online poker players. The scale seems appropriate for the assessment of such online behaviors. Further studies on the modified 17-item IAT version are needed.