TY - JOUR
T1 - Prevalence of pathological internet use among adolescents in Europe
T2 - Demographic and social factors
AU - Durkee, Tony
AU - Kaess, Michael
AU - Carli, Vladimir
AU - Parzer, Peter
AU - Wasserman, Camilla
AU - Floderus, Birgitta
AU - Apter, Alan
AU - Balazs, Judit
AU - Barzilay, Shira
AU - Bobes, Julio
AU - Brunner, Romuald
AU - Corcoran, Paul
AU - Cosman, Doina
AU - Cotter, Padraig
AU - Despalins, Romain
AU - Graber, Nadja
AU - Guillemin, Francis
AU - Haring, Christian
AU - Kahn, Jean Pierre
AU - Mandelli, Laura
AU - Marusic, Dragan
AU - Mészáros, Gergely
AU - Musa, George J.
AU - Postuvan, Vita
AU - Resch, Franz
AU - Saiz, Pilar A.
AU - Sisask, Merike
AU - Varnik, Airi
AU - Sarchiapone, Marco
AU - Hoven, Christina W.
AU - Wasserman, Danuta
PY - 2012/12
Y1 - 2012/12
N2 - Aims: To investigate the prevalence of pathological internet use (PIU) and maladaptive internet use (MIU) among adolescents in 11 European countries in relation to demographic, social factors and internet accessibility. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Setting: The 7th Framework European Union (EU) funded project, Saving and Empowering Young Lives in Europe (SEYLE), is a randomized controlled trial (RCT) evaluating interventions for risk behaviours among adolescents in Austria, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Romania, Slovenia and Spain, with Sweden serving as the coordinating centre. Participants: A total of 11956 adolescents (female/male: 6731/5225; mean age: 14.9±0.89) recruited from randomly selected schools within the 11 study sites. Measurements: Internet users were classified by gender into three categories: adaptive, maladaptive and pathological, based on their score in the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire for Internet Addiction (YDQ). Findings: The overall prevalence of PIU was 4.4%; it was higher among males than females (5.2% versus 3.8%) and differed between countries (χ2=309.98; d.f.=20; P<0.001). PIU correlated significantly with mean hours online and male gender. The highest-ranked online activities were watching videos, frequenting chatrooms and social networking; significantly higher rates of playing single-user games were found in males and social networking in females. Living in metropolitan areas was associated with PIU. Students not living with a biological parent, low parental involvement and parental unemployment showed the highest relative risks of both MIU and PIU. Conclusions: Across a range of countries in Europe, using the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire for Internet Addiction yields a prevalence of 'pathological internet use' of 4.4% among adolescents, but varies by country and gender; adolescents lacking emotional and psychological support are at highest risk.
AB - Aims: To investigate the prevalence of pathological internet use (PIU) and maladaptive internet use (MIU) among adolescents in 11 European countries in relation to demographic, social factors and internet accessibility. Design: Cross-sectional survey. Setting: The 7th Framework European Union (EU) funded project, Saving and Empowering Young Lives in Europe (SEYLE), is a randomized controlled trial (RCT) evaluating interventions for risk behaviours among adolescents in Austria, Estonia, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Romania, Slovenia and Spain, with Sweden serving as the coordinating centre. Participants: A total of 11956 adolescents (female/male: 6731/5225; mean age: 14.9±0.89) recruited from randomly selected schools within the 11 study sites. Measurements: Internet users were classified by gender into three categories: adaptive, maladaptive and pathological, based on their score in the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire for Internet Addiction (YDQ). Findings: The overall prevalence of PIU was 4.4%; it was higher among males than females (5.2% versus 3.8%) and differed between countries (χ2=309.98; d.f.=20; P<0.001). PIU correlated significantly with mean hours online and male gender. The highest-ranked online activities were watching videos, frequenting chatrooms and social networking; significantly higher rates of playing single-user games were found in males and social networking in females. Living in metropolitan areas was associated with PIU. Students not living with a biological parent, low parental involvement and parental unemployment showed the highest relative risks of both MIU and PIU. Conclusions: Across a range of countries in Europe, using the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire for Internet Addiction yields a prevalence of 'pathological internet use' of 4.4% among adolescents, but varies by country and gender; adolescents lacking emotional and psychological support are at highest risk.
KW - Adolescents
KW - Internet addiction
KW - Mental health
KW - Pathological internet use
KW - Risk-behaviors
KW - SEYLE
KW - School-based prevention
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84869885244&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2012.03946.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1360-0443.2012.03946.x
M3 - Article
C2 - 22621402
AN - SCOPUS:84869885244
SN - 0965-2140
VL - 107
SP - 2210
EP - 2222
JO - Addiction
JF - Addiction
IS - 12
ER -
