Internet Addiction Test research through a cross-cultural perspective: Spain, USA and Colombia. / La investigación del Internet Addiction Test desde una perspectiva intercultural: España, Estados Unidos y Colombia.

Internet users worldwide often experience problems related to their Internet use, and although culture has an important influence over how people communicate, what they value, and therefore how they use the Internet, little cross-cultural research on the subject of problematic Internet use has been carried out. The Internet Addiction Test (IAT), the most common measurement tool for this purpose, has been used in various countries. In this study we compared and analyzed the cross-cultural results found in the most recent research on the IAT factor analysis. We found that in countries with two or more studies, results are often replicated, suggesting that cultural context influences Internet behaviors. We conducted our own IAT factor analysis studies in three countries - Spain, USA, and Colombia - with a total of 1,273 participants. We compared our results with those from previous studies in the same countries and found similar results. The most notable finding was that all the IAT factor analyses, both ours and the previous ones in the same regions, contained a factor related to loss of control/time management problems and another factor related to emotional/psychological problems, thereby suggesting that impulse control problems and unfulfilled emotional needs are the most important components in the development of problematic Internet use in various countries around the world. Future research on problematic Internet use should focus on these aspects.

Los usuarios de Internet frecuentemente experimentan problemas relacionados con su uso de Internet y, aunque la cultura tiene una influencia importante en la forma en que las personas se comunican, en lo que valoran y, por lo tanto, en cómo utilizan Internet, hay escasas publicaciones sobre investigación intercultural del uso problemático de Internet. La herramienta más común para medir dicho uso, el Internet Addiction Test (IAT) se ha utilizado en varios países. En este estudio comparamos los resultados interculturales de las investigaciones más recientes sobre el análisis factorial del IAT. Encontramos que los resultados a menudo se replican en países con dos o más estudios, lo que sugiere que el contexto cultural influye en los comportamientos en Internet. Llevamos a cabo nuestros propios estudios de análisis factorial del IAT en tres países (España, EE. UU. y Colombia) con 1.273 participantes. Al comparar nuestros resultados con los de estudios anteriores, encontramos que nuestros resultados fueron similares a los de estudios anteriores. El hallazgo más notable fue que todos los análisis factoriales de IAT, tanto los nuestros como los anteriores en las mismas regiones, contenían un factor relacionado con la pérdida de control/problemas de gestión del tiempo y otro factor relacionado con problemas emocionales/psicológicos, lo que sugiere que el control de impulsos y las necesidades emocionales no satisfechas son componentes importantes en el desarrollo del uso problemático de Internet en todo el mundo. La investigación futura sobre el uso problemático de Internet debería centrarse en estos aspectos.

Is smartphone addiction really an addiction?

Aims In light of the rise in research on technological addictions and smartphone addiction in particular, the aim of this paper was to review the relevant literature on the topic of smartphone addiction and determine whether this disorder exists or if it does not adequately satisfy the criteria for addiction. Methods We reviewed quantitative and qualitative studies on smartphone addiction and analyzed their methods and conclusions to make a determination on the suitability of the diagnosis "addiction" to excessive and problematic smartphone use. Results Although the majority of research in the field declares that smartphones are addictive or takes the existence of smartphone addiction as granted, we did not find sufficient support from the addiction perspective to confirm the existence of smartphone addiction at this time. The behaviors observed in the research could be better labeled as problematic or maladaptive smartphone use and their consequences do not meet the severity levels of those caused by addiction. Discussion and conclusions Addiction is a disorder with severe effects on physical and psychological health. A behavior may have a similar presentation as addiction in terms of excessive use, impulse control problems, and negative consequences, but that does not mean that it should be considered an addiction. We propose moving away from the addiction framework when studying technological behaviors and using other terms such as "problematic use" to describe them. We recommend that problematic technology use is to be studied in its sociocultural context with an increased focus on its compensatory functions, motivations, and gratifications.

Trends in Scientific Literature on Addiction to the Internet, Video Games, and Cell Phones from 2006 to 2010.

BACKGROUND: The goals of the present work were to retrieve the scientific articles published on addiction to the Internet, video games, and cell phones and to analyze the pattern of publications in this area (who is doing the research, when and where it is taking place, and in which journals it is being published), to determine the research being conducted as well as to document geographical trends in publication over time in three types of technological addictions: Internet, cell phones, and video games. METHODS: Articles indexed in PubMed and PsycINFO between 2006 and 2010 related to the pathological use of Internet, cell phones, and video games were retrieved. Search results were reviewed to eliminate articles that were not relevant or were duplicates. RESULTS: Three hundred and thirty valid articles were retrieved from PubMed and PsycINFO from 2006 to 2010. Results were compared with those of 1996-2005. The year with the highest number of articles published was 2008 (n = 96). The most productive countries, in terms of number of articles published, were China (n = 67), the United States (n = 56), the United Kingdom (n = 47), and Taiwan (n = 33). The most commonly used language was English (70.3%), followed by Chinese (15.4%). Articles were published in 153 different journals. The journal that published the most articles was Cyberpsychology and Behavior (n = 73), followed by Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology (n = 27) and International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction (n = 16). Internet was the area most frequently studied, with an increasing interest in other areas such as online video games and cell phones. CONCLUSIONS: The number of publications on technological addictions reached a peak in 2008. The scientific contributions of China, Taiwan, and Korea are overrepresented compared to other scientific fields such as drug addiction. The inclusion of Internet Gaming Disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5(th) Edition could change the publication trends in the technological addiction area and underline the relevance of this upcoming disorder in dissatisfaction with life in general.