The validation of Implicit Association Test measures for smartphone and Internet addiction in at-risk children and adolescents

Abstract

BackgroundPotential concerns are increasing that smartphone and Internet addictions may have deleterious effects on the mental health. Despite the recognition of the important role that implicit associations may have over explicit processes in addiction, such implicit associations have not been comprehensively investigated with respect to Internet addiction. Therefore, we modified the Implicit Association Test (IAT) for smartphone and Internet addictions and investigated its validity in children and adolescents.MethodsIn this experimental study, 78 at-risk children and adolescents ranging in age from 7 to 17 years completed an IAT modified with pictures captured from the most popular Internet games among youth. Furthermore, measures of Internet and smartphone addictions, mental health and problem behaviors, impulsive tendencies, self-esteem, daily stress, and quality of life were assessed simultaneously.ResultsSignificant correlations were found between IAT D2SD scores and standardized scales for Internet (r = .28, p < .05) and smartphone (r = .33, p < .01) addictions. There were no significant correlations between IAT parameters and other scales measuring the constructs that are less relevant to the features of addiction, such as daily stress levels, impulsivity, and quality of life. Multiple regression analysis revealed that the IAT D2SD was independently and positively associated with smartphone addiction (p = .03) after controlling for other clinical correlates.ConclusionsThis study demonstrated good convergent and discriminant validity of this IAT as a novel measurement relating to Internet and smartphone addictions. Further longitudinal and prospective studies are needed to evaluate its potential utility in clinical and community settings.

Role of Frontostriatal Connectivity in Adolescents With Excessive Smartphone Use

“…In recent years, the use of smartphones has increased rapidly, and the negative phenomenon of excessive use of smartphones, including dependency, problematic use, and addictive behaviors ( 46 ), have been reported. Excessive Internet and smartphone use has become problematic for adolescents who may experience negative emotional, cognitive, and physical states during and after use ( 46 ).…”

“…In recent years, the use of smartphones has increased rapidly, and the negative phenomenon of excessive use of smartphones, including dependency, problematic use, and addictive behaviors ( 46 ), have been reported. Excessive Internet and smartphone use has become problematic for adolescents who may experience negative emotional, cognitive, and physical states during and after use ( 46 ). Resting-state connectivity analysis allows us to identify altered intrinsic functional connectivity in brain regions associated with cognitive control and affective-motivational processes in adolescents with excessive smartphone use ( 47 ).…”

Maternal Depression and Children's Screen Overuse

“…Based on the I-CURE cohort, studies have been conducted on children's smartphone and Internet game addiction. 19 20 A population-based sample of 400 children aged 2 to 5 years from three cities (Suwon, Goyang, and Seongnam) in Gyeonggi-do, Korea was recruited and consented to participate. All parents gave written informed consent and participated voluntarily.…”

Short version of the Smartphone Addiction Scale in Chinese adults: Psychometric properties, sociodemographic, and health behavioral correlates

“…The Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS), originally developed in Korean but published in English, is a contemporary scale developed to assess problematic smartphone use (PSU; Kwon, Lee, et al., 2013). Alternative measures of PSU include Smartphone Addiction Inventory (Lin et al., 2014), Smartphone Addiction Proneness Scale (Kim, Lee, Lee, Nam, & Chung, 2014), Problematic Mobile Phone Use Questionnaire – Revised (Kuss, Harkin, Kanjo, & Billieux, 2018), and Implicit Association Test measures for Smartphone and Internet Addiction (Roh et al., 2018). The short version of SAS (SAS-SV; Kwon, Kim, Cho, & Yang, 2013) is among the most widely used instruments with validated translations in Turkish (Noyan, Darçın, Nurmedov, Yılmaz, & Dilbaz, 2015), Italian (De Pasquale, Sciacca, & Hichy, 2017), Spanish and French (Lopez-Fernandez, 2017), and Arabic (Sfendla et al., 2018), making it a useful instrument for cross-cultural comparisons and further research.…”