The wide functionality and the vast range of attributes offered by smartphones has led to a substantial increase in the average amount of time these devices are used per day. An excessive use of these tools has been shown to result in symptomatology similar to psychological disorders caused by substance addiction. In Spain, smartphone use has risen exponentially but the effects of this increase remain unclear. Therefore, an instrument is required to help determine the extent of smartphone addiction in the Spanish population. The Smartphone Addiction Inventory (SPAI) is a valid and reliable mean to identify and measure smartphone addiction and so, the aim of this research is the translation and adaptation of SPAI to Spanish, as well as the analysis of its psychometric properties in a Spanish adult population of 2,958 adults, at the University of Valencia. A multiphase-interactive model has been used, based on classical translation–back-translation methods to translate and adapt the SPAI. Moreover, a confirmatory factor analysis to verify that the inventory showed acceptable goodness of fit indices (χ2293 = 4795.909, Comparative Fit Index = 0.927, Tucker–Lewis Index = 0.919, Root Mean Square Error of approximation = 0.072, and Standardised Root Mean square Residual = 0.051) has been carried out. Also good reliability has been found for the global inventory (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.949), and each of its corresponding factors: compulsive behaviour, functional impairment, abstinence, and tolerance (Cronbach’s alpha = 0.856, 0.888, 0.855, and 0.712, respectively). Hence, the SPAI has been adequately translated and adapted for its use in Spain and therefore it is a useful tool for evaluating the degree of smartphone addiction in the Spanish adult population.

Background: In recent years, the abusive use of the smartphone has reached a situation that could be considered pathological. In this sense, different instruments to assess this problematic use or addiction to the smartphone are used. One of these instruments is the Smartphone Addition Inventory (SPAI), which has been validated in the Spanish language (SPAI-Spain). The main difficulty of these scales is to establish a cut-off point that determines such mobile addiction. On the other hand, self-perception was used in different addictions as a predictor of the problem. Aim: The objective of this study was to establish the cut-off point in the scores of the SPAI-Spain, using as a reference the self-perception of addiction values. Methods: A receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis was carried out, establishing as the cut-off point the one that presented a higher value of Youden J, indicative of its sensitivity and specificity. Results: 2958 participants from the university community completed the SPAI–Spain questionnaire. Differences in SPAI–Spain scores were found among age groups and gender, even though not all of them were statistically significant. When using the self-perception of smartphone addiction as the benchmark value, a score of 44 was established as the cutting point of the SPAI-Spain questionnaire, with a Youden J corresponding to 0.416. Conclusions: The implementation of a cut-off point of the SPAI-Spain questionnaire makes it an instrument that allows early identification of those individuals at risk of addiction, as well as the establishment of preventive and/or intervention measures.

No abstract

Background: In recent years, the abusive use of the smartphone has reached a situation that could be considered pathological, although there is no such classification in the DSM-IV. In this sense, different instruments to assess this problematic use or addiction to the smartphone are used. Among them, we found the SPAI, which has been validated in the Spanish language. The main difficulty of these scales is to establish a cut-off point that determines such mobile addiction. On the other hand, self-perception has been used in different addictions as a predictor of the problem. Aim: The objective of this study is to establish the cutting point in the scores of the SPAI scale validated in Spanish, using as a referent the self-perception of addiction values. Methods: A receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analysis was carried out, establishing as the cut-off point the one that presented a higher value of Youden J, indicative of its sensitivity and specificity. Results: 2598 participants from the university community completed the SPAI-Spain questionnaire. When using the self-perception of smartphone addiction as the benchmark value, a score of 44 has been established as the cutting point of the SPAI questionnaire, with a Youden J corresponding to 0.416. Conclusions: The implementation of a cut-off point of the SPAI questionnaire makes it an instrument that allows early identification of those individuals at risk of addiction as well as the establishment of preventive and/or intervention measures.