Michael Dreier

A hidden type of internet addiction? Intense and addictive use of social networking sites in adolescents

Internet Gaming Disorder has been included as a preliminary diagnosis in DSM-5. The question remains, if there are additional internet activities related to addictive use. Especially, use of social networking sites has been discussed to be related to excessive use, but only few empirical studies are available. We wanted to explore, if use of social networking sites is related to addiction symptoms and psychosocial distress and which variables (demography, personality) predict addictive use. A representative sample of n?=?9173 adolescents (12-19 years) was enrolled. Self-report questionnaires assessed demography, frequency of social networking sites use, internet addiction, personality, and psychosocial distress. Gender-specific associations were found between frequency of use of social networking sites and addiction criteria, especially regarding preoccupation and loss of control. Adolescents using social networking sites intensely were more often classified with internet addiction (4.1% boys, 3.6% girls) and displayed higher psychosocial distress. Frequency of social networking sites use and its addictive use were predicted by similar variables except for extraversion that was only related to frequency of use. Since the intense use of social networking sites can be related to addictive symptoms and is accompanied by psychosocial distress it might be considered as another form of addictive online behavior. Intense use of social networking is correlated with criteria for internet addiction.The prevalence amounted to 4.1% (boys) and 3.6% (girls).Addictive use was related to higher psychosocial distress.Extraversion predicted frequency of SNS-use but not addictive SNS-use.

Digital Stress over the Life Span: The Effects of Communication Load and Internet Multitasking on Perceived Stress and Psychological Health Impairments in a German Probability Sample

The present study investigated the psychological health effects and motivational origins of digital stress based on a representative survey of 1,557 German Internet users between 14 and 85 years of age. Communication load resulting from private e-mails and social media messages as well as Internet multitasking were positively related to perceived stress and had significant indirect effects on burnout, depression, and anxiety. Perceived social pressure and the fear of missing out on information and social interaction were key drivers of communication load and Internet multitasking. Age significantly moderated the health effects of digital stress as well as the motivational drivers of communication load and Internet multitasking. The results, thus, underline the need to address digital stress from a life span perspective.

Procrastination, Distress and Life Satisfaction across the Age Range – A German Representative Community Study

Addressing the lack of population-based data the purpose of this representative study was to assess procrastination and its associations with distress and life satisfaction across the life span. A representative German community sample (1,350 women; 1,177 men) between the ages of 14 and 95 years was examined by the short form of the General Procrastination Scale (GPS-K; 1) and standardized scales of perceived stress, depression, anxiety, fatigue and life satisfaction. As hypothesized, procrastination was highest in the youngest cohort (14–29 years). Only in the youngest and most procrastinating cohort (aged 14 to 29 years), men procrastinated more than women. As we had further hypothesized, procrastination was consistently associated with higher stress, more depression, anxiety, fatigue and reduced satisfaction across life domains, especially regarding work and income. Associations were also found with lack of a partnership and unemployment. Findings are discussed with regard to potential developmental and cohort effects. While procrastination appears to be a pervasive indicator for maladjustment, longitudinal analyses in high-risk samples (e.g. late adolescence, unemployment) are needed to identify means and mechanisms of procrastinating.

Free-to-play: About addicted Whales, at risk Dolphins and healthy Minnows. Monetarization design and Internet Gaming Disorder

INTRODUCTION Video games are not only changing due to technical innovation, but also because of new game design and monetization approaches. Moreover, elite gamer groups with financial in-game-investments co-finance all users of free-to-play-games. Besides questions on youth protection, the growing popularity of free-to-play games has fostered discussions on supposed associations to Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD). METHOD Children and adolescents using free-to-play browser games were examined in a German school-based representative study (N=3967; age range 12 to 18). Based on a clinical self-report AICA-S (Wölfling et al., 2011), students were categorized into non-problematic, risky, and addicted users. Psycho-social problems (SDQ; Goodman, 1997), perceived stress (PSS; Cohen, Kamarck & Mermelstein, 1983), coping strategies (BriefCOPE; Carver, 1997), and Average Revenue per (Paying) User (ARPU) were investigated as dependent variables. Furthermore, an industry classification (Freeloaders, Minnows, Dolphins, and Whales) for free-to-play gamers was used for additional relations regarding IGD, SDQ, PSS, BriefCOPE, and ARPU. RESULTS Among free-to-play gamers the prevalence of IGD amounted to 5.2%. Subjects classified with IGD displayed higher psycho-social symptoms than non-problematic users, reported higher degrees of perceived stress, and applied dysfunctional coping strategies more frequently. Additionally, we found a higher ARPU among subjects with IGD. CONCLUSION ARPU is significantly associated with IGD. Whales share significant characteristics with addicted video gamers; Dolphins might be classified as risky consumers; Minnows and Freeloaders are rather non-pathological gamers. Vulnerability for stress, dysfunctional coping, and free-to-play gaming represent an unhealthy combination.

The role of parents in the engagement of young children with digital technologies: Exploring tensions between rights of access and protection, from ‘Gatekeepers’ to ‘Scaffolders’

This study investigates the role played by parents as mediators of young children’s access and engagement with digital technologies. In Belgium, Germany, Latvia and Portugal, qualitative in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 families in each country, including one child between 6 and 7 years old. Our findings show that parents of young children mainly play the role of ‘gatekeepers’ when it comes to facilitating and constraining access to and use of digital technologies. Parents’ perceptions of the efficacy of digital technologies as responsible entertainment and as educational tools influence the technologies available at home and accessible to the child. These perceptions in turn impact parents’ mediation strategies with regard to children’s actual use of digital technologies, with restrictive mediation – of time and less of content – and supervision applied most. The power exerted by parents over access and use may be understood as a limitation of the children’s rights. On the other hand, parents are not always concerned with the right of protection as they believe – sometimes incorrectly – that they are in control of the content their children are exposed to.

Bipolar spectrum disorders in a clinical sample of patients with Internet addiction: hidden comorbidity or differential diagnosis?

Background and Aims Behavioral addictions and bipolar disorders have a certain probability of co-occurrence. While the presence of a manic episode has been defined as an exclusion criterion for gambling disorder, no such exclusion has been formulated for Internet addiction. Methods A clinical sample of 368 treatment seekers presenting with excessive to addictive Internet use was screened for bipolar spectrum disorders using the Mood Disorder Questionnaire. Psychopathology was assessed by the Symptom Checklist 90R and a clinical interview was administered to screen for comorbid disorders. Results Comorbid bipolar disorders were more frequent in patients meeting criteria for Internet addiction (30.9%) than among the excessive users (5.6%). This subgroup showed heightened psychopathological symptoms, including substance use disorders, affective disorders and personality disorders. Further differences were found regarding frequency of Internet use regarding social networking sites and online-pornography. Discussion Patients with Internet addiction have a heightened probability for meeting criteria of bipolar disorders. It is not possible to draw conclusions regarding the direction of this association but it is recommended to implement screening for bipolar disorders in patients presenting with Internet addiction. Conclusion Similar to gambling disorder, it might prove necessary to subsume bipolar disorders as an exclusion criterion for the future criteria of Internet addiction.

Adding Clinical Validity to the Statistical Power of Large-Scale Epidemiological Surveys on Internet Addiction in Adolescence: A Combined Approach to Investigate Psychopathology and Development-Specific Personality Traits Associated With Internet Addiction

OBJECTIVE Research has indicated that internet addiction is associated with psychosocial maladjustment in adolescence. Many epidemiologic surveys are lacking representativeness, and knowledge on disorder-specific risk factors is scarce. One weakness of epidemiologic studies often regards their lack of generalizability to clinical reality. The aim of this study was to provide a detailed description of internet addiction among adolescents, focusing on its prevalence in a population-based context, psychopathological correlates, and predisposing factors. METHODS The main analyses were based on 2 large representative samples of German adolescents (N = 9,293; 12-19 years) collected in 2012, and the results were validated on a consecutive sample of 237 treatment-seeking adolescents (from 2009-2014). The Scale for the Assessment of Internet and Computer Game Addiction (AICA-S), Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), Symptom Checklist-90 Revised (SCL-90R), and NEO-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) were administered. RESULTS Internet addiction occurred in 2.6% of adolescents, with almost comparable rates in both genders, whereas female patients (1.3%) were underrepresented among the treatment seekers. Internet-addicted adolescents from the clinical and the nonclinical setting displayed higher psychopathology (SDQ: P < .001) and functional impairment (Global Assessment of Functioning: P < .001) than adolescents with nonproblematic internet use. Low conscientiousness (in boys: β = -0.161 to -0.220; in girls: β = -0.103 to -0.240) and high negative affect (in boys: β = 0.141 to -0.193; in girls: β = 0.175 to 0.290) were personality correlates of internet addiction. CONCLUSIONS Internet addiction is a widespread problematic behavior among male and female adolescents, and it is related to psychopathological symptoms. Low conscientiousness and high negative affect were identified as stable correlates for internet addiction independent of age and gender and can therefore be considered as risk factors for internet addiction.

1653 – The developemnt of adaptive and maladaptive patterns of internet use among european adolescents at risk for internet addictive behaviors: a grounded theory inquiry

Introduction Full findings from the European Commission funded EU-NET-ADB study (Safer Internet Programme) will be presented. Objectives Empirical findings that elucidate the development of an internet addictive behaviour are still incomplete. This is also related to risk as well as protective factors of internet use. Here a process oriented approach to identify underlying conditions of an internet addictive behaviour was chosen. Aims The aim of the study is to enhance the knowledge and understanding of underlying processes which lead to situation were internet addictive behaviour can evolve. Methods In total 124 in-depth interviews were conducted with adolescents with an age of 14-17 year. Adolescents from seven different European countries (Greece, Spain, Poland, Germany, Romania, Netherlands & Iceland) participated in this study. Eligibility was granted when adolescents scored more than 30 point or equal in the Internet Addiction Test (IAT; Young, 1998). Data analysis was conducted by use of a step-wise full version of Grounded Theory (Strauss & Corbin, 1990; 1998). Results Adolescents employed maladaptive and adaptive strategies in regard to their involvement in the internet. Thus different Digital Outcomes such as “I am addicted” (Stuck Online) ranging to more adaptive internet behaviour like (Juggling it All) and patterns of self-correcting (Coming Full Cycle) were identified. These Digital Outcomes were consequently linked to adolescents developmental pathways and can be characterized by the core category “Navigating Adolescent Pathways”. Conclusions Contextual and developmental factors that mediate the development of an internet addictive behaviour could be identified and linked to multiple Digital Outcomes.

Permanently online and permanently procrastinating? The mediating role of Internet use for the effects of trait procrastination on psychological health and well-being:

A growing number of studies suggest that Internet users frequently utilize online media as “tools for procrastination.” This study thus investigated the relationship between trait procrastination, Internet use, and psychological well-being in a representative sample of N = 1,577 German Internet users. The results revealed that trait procrastination was associated with an increased use of leisure-related online content and impaired control over Internet use. As a result, Internet users high in trait procrastination showed a higher risk of experiencing negative consequence of Internet use in other life domains. These negative repercussions of insufficiently self-regulated Internet use partially accounted for the correlation between trait procrastination and impaired well-being (i.e. stress, anxiety, and depression). These findings underline the role of online media as an instrument for dysfunctional task delay among Internet users. Implications of the results are discussed with regard to media use and self-control in general and procrastinatory media use in specific.

Is Sensation Seeking a correlate of excessive behaviors and behavioral addictions? A detailed examination of patients with Gambling Disorder and Internet Addiction.

Sensation Seeking has repeatedly been related to substance use. Also, its role as a correlate of Gambling Disorder has been discussed although research has led to heterogeneous results. Likewise, first studies on Internet Addiction have indicated increased Sensation Seeking, to some extent contradicting clinical impression of patients suffering from internet addiction. We assessed Sensation Seeking in a clinical sample of n=251 patients with Gambling Disorder, n=243 patients with internet addiction, n=103 clients with excessive but not addictive internet use, and n=142 healthy controls. The clinical groups were further sub-divided according to the preferred type of addictive behavior (slot-machine gambling vs. high arousal gambling activities and internet gaming disorder vs. other internet-related addictive behaviors). Decreased scores in some subscales of Sensation Seeking were found among male patients compared to healthy controls with no differences between patients with Gambling Disorder and Internet Addiction. The type of preferred gambling or online activity was not related to differences in Sensation Seeking. Previous findings indicating only small associations between Sensation Seeking and Gambling Disorder were confirmed. Regarding Internet Addiction our results contradict findings from non-clinical samples. Sensation Seeking might be relevant in initiating contact to the health care system.