Predictors of Problematic Internet and mobile phone usage in adolescents

Abstract

This study uses an innovative statistical strategy to test the role of certain variables as predictors of problematic Internet and mobile phone usage among adolescents in Spain and in the United Kingdom . A paper-and-pencil questionnaire was used, with socio-demographics and patterns of technology usage as variables, and two tests were administered: the Problematic Internet Entertainment Use Scale for Adolescents (PIEUSA) and the Mobile Phone Problem Use Scale for Adolescents (MPPUSA). The overall sample size was 2228 high school students aged between 11 and 18 from Barcelona and London. PIEUSA and MPPUSA scores were transformed into normed scores, and both were then dichotomized according to three statistical criteria as cut-off points (i.e., median, 80th percentile, and extreme scores below the 25th percentile and above the 75th percentile) in order to establish the relationship between the variables above and the excessive use of the Internet or mobile phones, using a binary logistic regression. The results show that the best predictive model for both technologies includes socio-demographic variables as predictors of extreme scores for excessive Internet and mobile phone usage, with good sensitivity, specificity and classification accuracy, as well as a notable capacity for discrimination according to the receiver-operating characteristic curve. Implications of these findings are discussed.

Relationship between Problematic Smartphone Use, Sleep Quality and Bedtime Procrastination: A Mediation Analysis

“…On the other hand, and responding to RQ2, we can see that women tend to use their smartphones for longer periods of time, which is one of the risk factors for PSU. Moreover, they show a higher PSU, which is consistent with numerous investigations [25,[38][39][40][41][43][44][45]. As indicated by different authors [46,47], women's smartphone use is predominantly social (e.g., social networking or instant messaging), compared to a more diverse pattern for men.…”

“…It is worth noting the difficulty in assessing and comparing the prevalence of PSU due to the inconsistency of diagnostic criteria and assessment methods [36]. Additionally, although some studies have found no sex differences [37], there is some consensus in the scientific evidence that women are at higher risk of developing PSU [38][39][40][41][42][43][44][45]. These differences could be caused by a different pattern of smartphone use, with women using smartphones for social purposes (i.e., social networking or instant messaging) and men for more varied purposes, such as video games, calls, and multimedia content [46,47].…”

The Influence of Sociodemographic Factors on Mobile Device Use among Young Children in Putrajaya, Malaysia

“…Several studies reported a significant positive association between girls and problematic mobile device usage [ 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 ]. Contrasting this, several studies documented a significant positive association between boys and problematic mobile device usage [ 56 ] or revealed higher scores in boys than in girls [ 32 , 44 , 45 , 57 ].…”

“…The parent’s educational level significantly contributes to problematic mobile device use as reported in [ 53 , 58 , 61 , 62 ]. Parents with lower educational levels tend to allow their children to spend extra time on a mobile device compared to parents with higher educational levels [ 22 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 ].…”