Measuring internet use: comparisons of different assessments and with internet addiction

Background: The measurement of Internet use is an under-documented topic despite the worldwide growth of problematic Internet use and the recent debate in addiction research suggesting that heavy use over time should be suitable for population-based assessment. This study compared different measures of Internet use to identify the most relevant one, and tested whether Internet use was a good proxy of self-reported Internet addiction.Methods: Data were collected in the ado@internet.ch study among 3054 Swiss 8th grade adolescents. Different assessments of Internet use (frequency, number of hours spent on Internet, quantity-frequency measure, latent score) were compared using rank invariance across instruments. We also examined associations of Internet use with health outcomes (Internet addiction, wellbeing, somatic health problems, and quantity of sleeping). Additionally, associations of Internet addiction with health outcomes were investigated.Results: Quantity-frequency captured 82% of the variabi...