Smartphone Addiction Inventory (SPAI): Translation, adaptation and validation of the tool in Spanish adult population

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

Self-Perception of Dependence as an Indicator of Smartphone Addiction¿Establishment of a Cutoff Point in the SPAI-Spain Inventory.

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 measure

Internet addiction: a systematic review of epidemiological research for the last decade

In the last decade, Internet usage has grown tremendously on a global scale. The increasing popularity and frequency of Internet use has led to an increasing number of reports highlighting the potential negative consequences of overuse. Over the last decade, research into Internet addiction has proliferated. This paper reviews the existing 68 epidemiological studies of Internet addiction that (i) contain quantitative empirical data, (ii) have been published after 2000, (iii) include an analysis relating to Internet addiction, (iv) include a minimum of 1000 participants, and (v) provide a full-text article published in English using the database Web of Science. Assessment tools and conceptualisations, prevalence, and associated factors in adolescents and adults are scrutinised. The results reveal the following. First, no gold standard of Internet addiction classification exists as 21 different assessment instruments have been identified. They adopt official criteria for substance use disorders or pathological gambling, no or few criteria relevant for an addiction diagnosis, time spent online, or resulting problems. Second, reported prevalence rates differ as a consequence of different assessment tools and cut-offs, ranging from 0.8% in Italy to 26.7% in Hong Kong. Third, Internet addiction is associated with a number of sociodemographic, Internet use, and psychosocial factors, as well as comorbid symptoms and disorder in adolescents and adults. The results indicate that a number of core symptoms (i.e., compulsive use, negative outcomes and salience) appear relevant for diagnosis, which assimilates Internet addiction and other addictive disorders and also differentiates them, implying a conceptualisation as syndrome with similar etiology and components, but different expressions of addictions. Limitations include the exclusion of studies with smaller sample sizes and studies focusing on specific online behaviours. Conclusively, there is a need for nosological precision so that ultimately those in need can be helped by translating the scientific evidence established in the context of Internet addiction into actual clinical practice

El uso problemático del teléfono móvil: desde el abuso a su consideración como adicción comportamental

El objetivo general de esta investigación se ha dirigido al análisis del uso problemático del teléfono móvil entre la población española, desde los 16 a los 65 años de edad. Nuestra hipótesis se ha basado en la consideración de que dicho uso problemático respondería a los criterios de adicción, como lo son las sustancias y el juego patológico, y que por lo tanto, como otras adicciones, es capaz de afectar a capas amplias de la población, no solo a jóvenes y adolescentes. En la consecución de dicho objetivo se llevó a cabo inicialmente un estudio y revisión del histórico de investigaciones precedentes, tanto en el ámbito de la impulsividad como en la propia consideración del teléfono móvil como adicción comportamental. Posteriormente se realizó un trabajo de campo con una muestra de ámbito nacional, en 17 comunidades autónomas de España, con un total de 1.126 entrevistas y un cuestionario semiestructurado aplicado mediante un procedimiento on-line. Como resultado de este trabajo se presentan cinco artículos, tanto publicados como en actual revisión por las revistas correspondientes. En el primer artículo se ha pretendido analizar el peso e importancia, en el histórico de investigaciones precedentes, de la impulsividad como antesala de las adicciones en general, así como en el contexto de las nuevas adicciones sociales o comportamentales. Teniendo en cuenta que progresivamente existe un creciente número de publicaciones que analizan la extensión de dicho modelo al ámbito comportamental, se desprende que la impulsividad tiene un papel esencial en este proceso, encontrándose sin embargo también asociada con frecuencia a otras patologías. En este trabajo se concluye por lo tanto que el modelo de adicción a sustancias puede ser aplicable al campo de las adicciones comportamentales considerando la impulsividad como precedente..

Antecedents and consequences of problematic smartphone use: A systematic literature review of an emerging research area

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Internet and Smartphone Use-Related Addiction Health Problems: Treatment, Education and Research

This Special Issue presents some of the main emerging research on technological topics of health and education approaches to Internet use-related problems, before and during the beginning of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The objective is to provide an overview to facilitate a comprehensive and practical approach to these new trends to promote research, interventions, education, and prevention. It contains 40 papers, four reviews and thirty-five empirical papers and an editorial introducing everything in a rapid review format. Overall, the empirical ones are of a relational type, associating specific behavioral addictive problems with individual factors, and a few with contextual factors, generally in adult populations. Many have adapted scales to measure these problems, and a few cover experiments and mixed methods studies. The reviews tend to be about the concepts and measures of these problems, intervention options, and prevention. In summary, it seems that these are a global culture trend impacting health and educational domains. Internet use-related addiction problems have emerged in almost all societies, and strategies to cope with them are under development to offer solutions to these contemporary challenges, especially during the pandemic situation that has highlighted the global health problems that we have, and how to holistically tackle them

One More, One More... You Get Stuck – The Role of Craving in Smartphone-Related Technostress

Smartphones have been integrated into nearly every aspect of human life. Because of them, being entertained, communicating with others, and finding information has never been easier. Even though such possibilities are positive on the surface, the versatile nature of smartphones has also created issues, such as people using them compulsively or excessively. By collecting and analyzing data from 30 semi-structured interviews, we explored how users may experience craving (unstoppable/uncontrollable desire to use, despite the negative consequences) that make them use smartphones compulsively or excessively. Such use may eventually lead to technostress, which is stress caused by technology use. We present three levels of craving (stimuli, sensation, and content) and discuss how they affect smartphone use and technostress. We contribute to research by discussing craving in the context of technostress. As a practical implication, different stakeholders could use our results to address the issues relating to stress caused by smartphone use

Experiential Avoidance and Technological Addictions in Adolescents

Background and aims This study focuses on the use of popular information and communication technologies (ICTs) by adolescents: the Internet, mobile phones, and video games. The relationship of ICT use and experiential avoidance (EA), a construct that has emerged as underlying and transdiagnostic to a wide variety of psychological problems, including behavioral addictions, is examined. EA refers to a self-regulatory strategy involving efforts to control or escape from negative stimuli such as thoughts, feelings, or sensations that generate strong distress. This strategy, which may be adaptive in the short term, is problematic if it becomes an inflexible pattern. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore whether EA patterns were associated with addictive or problematic use of ICT in adolescents. Methods A total of 317 students of the Spanish southeast between 12 and 18 years old were recruited to complete a questionnaire that included questions about general use of each ICTs, an experiential avoidance questionnaire, a brief inventory of the Big Five personality traits, and specific questionnaires on problematic use of the Internet, mobile phones, and video games. Results Correlation analysis and linear regression showed that EA largely explained results regarding the addictive use of the Internet, mobile phones, and video games, but not in the same way. As regards gender, boys showed a more problematic use of video games than girls. Concerning personality factors, conscientiousness was related to all addictive behaviors. Discussion and conclusions We conclude that EA is an important construct that should be considered in future models that attempt to explain addictive behaviors