Problematic use or addiction? A scoping review on conceptual and operational definitions of negative social networking sites use in adolescents

The aim of this study was to assess the conceptual and operational descriptions of negative social networking site (SNS) use in adolescents. A search was conducted among four databases, following the guidelines set forth in the PRISMA-ScR. The search resulted in 1503 articles, of which 112 met the inclusion criteria. The results showed that the negative use of SNS has been conceptualised from two approaches: (1) the component model of addiction and (2) a cognitive-behavioural problematic use paradigm. Thirty-seven instruments assessing this problem were found, with the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale and its adaptations being the most widely used ones. These instruments dimensions were vaguely defined and often overlapped with one another. In conclusion, no standardised theoretical framework exists to assess negative SNS use in adolescents. This lack of a theoretical definition makes it difficult to compare results among studies and determine the true extent of the problem

Problematic use or addiction? A scoping review on conceptual and operational definitions of negative social networking sites use in adolescents

[EN] The aim of this study was to assess the conceptual and operational descriptions of negative social networking site (SNS) use in adolescents. A search was conducted among four databases, following the guidelines set forth in the PRISMA-ScR. The search resulted in 1503 articles, of which 112 met the inclusion criteria. The results showed that the negative use of SNS has been conceptualised from two approaches: (1) the component model of addiction and (2) a cognitive-behavioural problematic use paradigm. Thirty-seven instruments assessing this problem were found, with the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale and its adaptations being the most widely used ones. These instruments dimensions were vaguely defined and often overlapped with one another. In conclusion, no standardised theoretical framework exists to assess negative SNS use in adolescents. This lack of a theoretical definition makes it difficult to compare results among studies and determine the true extent of the problem.Open Access funding provided by University of Basque Country (UPV/EHU)

Presentation: Bullying and Internet risks: diagnosis, prevention and intervention

Peer victimization is a very relevant educational, social, and health problem. In recent decades, the educational system and society have advanced in addressing and preventing these problems. However, we are still far from having safe centers where there is no discrimination for any reason. In this sense, it should be made explicit that all the problems in the educational field are important but bullying and cyberbullying are among the few that imply great suffering for those who endure them (and their families), and, in some cases, can even cost human lives. Thus, all the actors (educators, psychologists, health personnel, families, and those involved) must work together to prevent and intervene in bullying. In this situation, researchers must be a cornerstone in its resolution. Thanks to our work, the prevalence, incidence, and stability of bullying and the protection and vulnerability factors involved are known. Also, numerous prevention and intervention programs have been carried out with evidence of effectiveness. In this sense, thanks to the Journal of Education, we, the guest editors, launched a monograph entitled “Bullying and Internet Risks: diagnosis, prevention, and intervention.” For this purpose, we launched an open call and invited research groups with an outstanding national trajectory. We are grateful for the number of manuscripts received (31) from Spain, Italy, and various Latin American countries. The final acceptance rate was less than 25%, and we feel that many high-quality works were left out for space reasons. We appreciate the work of more than 40 reviewers from more than twenty universities who have supported the initiative and improved the published manuscripts through their excellent work. After this process, we selected seven manuscripts that we present herein and that we believe fully respond to the objectives we imposed on ourselves. In the first place, and responding to the objective of the diagnosis, an article is presented that, through a very large sample (+10k students of Secondary Education), builds and validates a scale of self-perception and perception of bullying. It is necessary to provide the educational community with rigorously validated tools that, as in this case, allow knowing the students’ perception of bullying. In addition, we wanted to highlight the joint actions within the framework of the Master Plan for coexistence and improvement of security in educational centers, as it is crucial to increase minors’ and young people’s trust in the State Security Forces and Corps. Next are three systematic reviews (SR) of cyberbullying, the Internet relational risk with the highest presence in the manuscripts submitted. The first SR focuses on the relationship of cyberbullying with suicidal behavior, associating the two problems and highlighting the harmful nature of cyberbullying. The second SR emphasizes cyberbullying and different executive functions and their relationship with the roles of cybervictim or cyberbully. Finally, another SR on qualitative studies is presented, which highlights the role of the family and the parents’ perception of the phenomenon of cyberbullying, which can be useful in prevention and intervention programs. To conclude, the monograph is also fortunate to have several empirical studies that are unique concerning the nature of their design and the theme chosen. The first presents a longitudinal study (6 months) with students of Primary Education (much less studied than students of later stages). The data obtained show the relevance of social support and socio-emotional competences for the prevention of cybervictimization. The second one is a multilevel study that analyzes the effect of the group-class on cybervictimization in Secondary students, using an unusual level of analysis in the literature and of utmost importance for prevention and intervention strategies. Finally, and as a closing of the monograph, we present an investigation on another relevant relational risk of the Internet: cyber dating abuse. It highlights the prevalence of this problem and its relationship with cyberbullying. After all the above, we wished to collect articles in the monograph that address different areas, with varying levels of action and varied methodologies. We sincerely hope that this compendium will allow other researchers to update their knowledge and will humbly contribute to understanding a problem about which much remains to be done. Finally, we want to thank all the authors for their participation and interest, the reviewers for kindly sharing their time to improve the quality of the works, and the editorial team of the Revista de Educación for their support, sensitivity, and scope in a topic as relevant as this. Hopefully, this monograph helps contribute to the emotional well-being and quality of life of our most important capital: our children and adolescents.La victimización entre iguales es un problema educativo, social y de salud de gran relevancia. El sistema educativo y la sociedad ha avanzado en las últimas décadas en el abordaje y prevención de estas problemáticas, pero aún estamos lejos de tener centros seguros en los que no haya discriminación por razón alguna. En este sentido cabe hacer explícito que todas las problemáticas en el ámbito educativo son importantes, pero el acoso y el ciberacoso son de los pocos que suponen un alto sufrimiento para quiénes los padecen (y sus familias) y, en algunos casos, puede llegar incluso a costar vidas humanas. En este sentido, es necesaria labor conjunta de todos los actores (educadores/as, psicólogos/as, personal sanitario, familias, implicados/as…) a la hora de prevenir e intervenir sobre el mismo. Ante esta situación, los investigadores debemos ser una pieza angular en su resolución, ya que gracias a nuestra labor se conoce la prevalencia, incidencia y estabilidad, así como los factores de protección y vulnerabilidad implicados, y se han llevado a cabo, entre otros, numerosos programas de prevención e intervención con evidencias de efectividad. En este sentido, gracias a la Revista de Educación, los editores invitados lanzamos un monográfico titulado “Acoso escolar y riesgos de Internet: diagnóstico, prevención e intervención”. Para ello se lanzó una convocatoria abierta y también se contactó por invitación con grupos de investigación con una sobresaliente trayectoria a nivel nacional. Debemos agradecer la cantidad de manuscritos recibidos (31) tanto de España, Italia, como de diferentes países latinoamericanos. La tasa de aceptación final ha sido inferior al 25% y sentimos que muchos trabajos de alta calidad hayan quedado fuera por motivos de espacio. Agradecemos la labor de más de 40 revisores, de más de una veintena de universidades, que han apoyado la iniciativa y mejorado con su buen hacer los manuscritos publicados. Tras todo este proceso, se ha derivado una selección de siete manuscritos que se presentan hoy aquí, y que creemos dan cumplida respuesta a los objetivos que nos imponíamos. En primer lugar, y respondiendo al objetivo del diagnóstico, se presenta un artículo que, a través de una amplísima muestra (+10k estudiantes de Educación Secundaria), construye y valida la una escala de autopercepción y percepción del acoso escolar. Es necesario poner al servicio de la comunidad educativa herramientas rigurosamente validadas que, como en este caso, permitan conocer la percepción respecto al acoso del propio estudiantado. Además, queríamos poner en valor las acciones conjuntas en el marco del Plan Director para la convivencia y mejora de la seguridad en los centros educativos, ya que es importante aumentar la confianza de menores y jóvenes en las Fuerzas y Cuerpos de Seguridad del Estado. A continuación, se presentan tres revisiones sistémicas (RS) en relación con el ciberacoso, que ha sido el riesgo relacional de Internet que más presencia ha tenido en los manuscritos enviados. La primera RS se centra en la relación del ciberacoso con la conducta suicida asociando ambas problemáticas y poniendo de manifiesto lo pernicioso del problema. La segunda RS pone el énfasis en el ciberacoso y diferentes funciones ejecutivas y su relación con los roles de cibervíctima o ciberagresor. Por último, se presenta otra RS sobre estudios cualitativos donde se resalta el papel de la familia y la percepción que los padres y madres tienen del fenómeno del ciberacoso que puede ser de utilidad en programas de prevención e intervención. Para cerrar, el monográfico tiene también la fortuna de contar con varios estudios empíricos que son singulares por la naturaleza de su diseño y la temática escogida. El primero presenta un estudio longitudinal con alumnado de Educación Primaria (mucho menos estudiado que el alumnado de etapas ulteriores) durante seis meses. Los datos obtenidos muestran la relevancia del apoyo social y las competencias socioemocionales a la hora de prevenir la cibervictimización. En segundo es un estudio multinivel que analiza el efecto del grupo-clase sobre la cibervictimización en estudiantes de Secundaria permitiendo un nivel de análisis poco habitual en la literatura y de suma importancia para las estrategias de prevención e intervención. Por último, y como cierre del monográfico, presentamos una investigación sobre otro relevante riesgo relacional de Internet: la ciberviolencia en el noviazgo. En este, se pone de relieve la prevalencia de este problema y su relación con el ciberacoso. Tras todo lo expuesto, en el monográfico se han querido recoger artículos que abordan diferentes áreas, con niveles de acción diferentes y con metodologías variadas. Deseamos de corazón que este compendio permita a otros/as investigadores/as actualizar sus conocimientos y contribuir humildemente a la comprensión de un problema sobre el que aún queda mucho por hacer. Por último, queremos agradecer a todos los autores su participación e interés, a los revisores por compartir amablemente su tiempo en mejorar la calidad de los trabajos y al equipo editorial de la Revista de Educación por su apoyo, sensibilidad y alcance de miras en una temática tan relevante como esta. Ojalá este monográfico contribuya de alguna manera al bienestar emocional y la calidad de vida de nuestro capital más importante: nuestros niños y adolescentes

Safety.Net: A Pilot Study on a Multi-Risk Internet Prevention Program

Many programs exist to prevent bullying and cyberbullying. Nevertheless, despite evidence of the numerous overlapping risks of the Internet, programs that jointly and adequately address large sets of risks are not presently described in the scientific literature. This study’s main objective was to assess the effectiveness of the Safety.net program in a pilot sample. This program prevents eight Internet risks: cyberbullying, sexting, online grooming, cyber dating abuse, problematic Internet use, nomophobia, Internet gaming disorder, and online gambling disorder. The Safety.net program comprises 16 sessions and 4 modules (digital skills, relational risks, dysfunctional risks, and change of attitudes and cognitions). Each session lasts one hour, but the program has a networked instructional design to recall previous content in later sessions. For its assessment, a pre/post-test repeated measures design with a control group and an intervention group was used. The study sample was 165 adolescents between 11 and 14 years old (M = 12.11, SD = 0.89). The intervention group demonstrated improvements compared to the control group concerning online grooming, problematic Internet use, Internet gaming disorder, and nomophobia. These results suggest that the Safety.net program is effective in preventing the increase of most of the assessed risks and that it reduces some of them with a small number of sessions.This research was funded by the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness of Spain (RTI2018-094212-B-I00) and the International University of la Rioja (Project “Ciberpsicología (Trienio 2017–2020)”)

Problematic online gambling among adolescents: A systematic review about prevalence and related measurement issues

.Background and aims Despite its illegality among adolescents, online gambling is a common practice, which puts their mental health and well-being at serious risk. This systematic review summarises international scientific literature from the last 20 years on problematic online gambling among adolescents (11–21 years old) to determine its prevalence and to analyse related measurement issues. Methods The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines were followed and a protocol was registered in the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO, IC: CRD42020162932). Five academic databases were consulted, which resulted in an initial sample of 658 papers. Results Sixteen studies met the inclusion criteria for this review. All studies were cross-sectional and targeted students from elementary school, secondary school or university. Most followed a convenience sampling procedure. The primary measurement instruments used were the DSM-IV-MR-J and SOGS-RA. Between 0.77% and 57.5% of adolescents present some degree of problematic online gambling (problem, pathological or disordered) depending on the instruments used, the study samples and the timeframe analysed. Between 0.89% and 1% of adolescents exhibited an online gambling disorder. Discussion and conclusion There is a great heterogeneity in the methodology of the reviewed studies (samples, measurement instruments, cut-off points and criteria applied). The limited number of studies and the limited generalizability of their results suggest the need for further research and for development of specific instruments to assess different levels of problematic online gambling in representative samples of adolescents based on clinical ‘gold standard’ criteria and more accurate cut-off points.This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness, RTI2018-094212-B-I00: (CIBER-AACC), and by the International University of La Rioja, Project “Cyberpsychology (Triennium 2017–2020)”

Loot box engagement: A scoping review of primary studies on prevalence and association with problematic gaming and gambling

Sixteen primary empirical studies met the inclusion criteria for this review. All studies used cross-sectional designs, and most used convenience samples. Twelve study samples were comprised exclusively of gamers, and two were comprised of gamers and/or gamblers. Only six studies included adolescents. The annual prevalence rate of loot box purchases was higher for adult gamers than for adolescents (22.7%-44.2% and 20%-33.9%, respectively), but in studies with general population samples, the opposite was true (24.9% for players aged 13-14 versus 7.8% for adults). In general, the studies suggested a significant positive relationship between engagement with loot boxes and problematic gaming and gambling, but this may be related to the type of engagement (open/purchase/sell), and the characteristics of the study participants (male/female, adolescents/adults, gamers/gamers-gamblers/general population). Conclusions This scoping review summarizes the results of recent empirical studies on engagement with loot boxes and discusses how methodological issues may affect their results and interpretation. Recommendations for future research are also provided.This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness, RTI2018-094212-B-I00: (CIBERAACC), and by the International University of La Rioja, Project "Cyberpsychology" (2017-2020) and Project "DOMIN-US" (2020-2022). There was no additional external funding received for this study. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

Epidemiology of online sexual solicitation and interaction of minors with adults: A longitudinal study

Background: There have been very few longitudinal studies on online sexual solicitation and the online interaction between minors and adults. Still less evidence exists on the relationship of these problems with minors' Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL). Objective: This study aimed to analyze the point prevalence, period prevalence (prevalence over time) and incidence (new cases over time) of online sexual solicitation and interactions between minors and adults throughout three consecutive time periods and to compare the HRQoL among categories of victims (non-victims, new victims, ceased victims, intermittent victims, and stable victims). Participants and setting: The participants were 1029 Spanish students (43 % boys, 57 % girls), aged 12–15 years. Methods: A longitudinal study was conducted over a 13-month period, with measurements taken at three time points. Results: For sexual solicitation, the point prevalence was 11.3 % at wave 1 (W1), 11.9 % at wave 2 (W2), and 16.1 % at wave 3 (W3). For sexualized interactions, prevalence rates were 4.8 %, 7 %, and 7.1 %, respectively. However, throughout the study, almost 23 % of minors reported some sexual solicitation and 14 % reported some sexual interaction. In this same period of time, the incidence of new cases was 1 in 10. Being a victim during W1 meant that in W3, there was almost twice the risk of having a low HRQoL. In general, those who were not victims of either solicitation or sexualized interactions with adults presented better HRQoL than those who experienced victimization. Conclusions

Profiles of Problematic Internet Use and Its Impact on Adolescents' Health-Related Quality of Life

The internet has been a breakthrough for adolescents in many ways, but its use can also become dysfunctional and problematic, leading to consequences for personal well-being. The main objective is to analyze profiles related to problematic internet use and its relationship with health-related quality of life (HRQoL). An analytical and cross-sectional study was carried out in a region of northern Spain. The sample comprised 12,285 participants. Sampling was random and representative. Mean age and standard deviation was 14.69 +/- 1.73 (11-18 years). The Spanish versions of the Problematic and Generalized Internet Use Scale (GPIUS2) and of the Health-Related Quality of Life (KIDSCREEN-27) were used. Four profiles were detected (non-problematic use, mood regulator, problematic internet use, and severe problematic use). The prevalence of these last two profiles was 18.5% and 4.9%, respectively. Problematic internet use correlated negatively and significantly with HRQoL. The severe problematic use profile presented a significant decrease in all dimensions of HRQoL. Analyses were carried out to extract a cut-off point for GPIUS2 (52 points). The results and practical implications are discussed.This research was funded by Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness, RTI2018-094212-B-I00: (CIBER-AACC); and by the International University of la Rioja, Project "Cyberpsychology (Trienio 2017-20)"

Solicitation and Sexualized Interactions of Minors with Adults: Prevalence, Overlap with Other Forms of Cybervictimization, and Relationship with Quality of Life

Sexual solicitation and sexualized interaction with minors by adults constitute one of the most pernicious risks of the Internet. Little is known about the age range in which this phenomenon is most prevalent or the relationship and overlap of this problem with other risks, such as peer-to-peer cybervictimization and cyber dating abuse. Additionally, little empirical evidence exists on whether the overlap between these types of online victimization affects health-related quality of life (HRQoL). This study aimed to: 1) analyze the prevalence of sexual solicitation and interaction according to sex and stage of adolescence; 2) relate this problem to other forms of online victimization (cybervictimization and cyber dating abuse); 3) analyze the overlap between these forms of online victimization and differences in HRQoL scores. A cross-sectional and analytical study with 3,578 adolescents (52.7% girls) aged between 10-15 years was carried out. Of the adolescents in the study sample, 12.6% (n = 448) had received sexual requests and 6.4% (n = 230) had interacted sexually with adults. Sexual solicitation was most common among girls in middle adolescence. Of the participants, 33.9% (n = 1,216) had been involved in some form of online victimization. Peer cybervictimization and cyber dating abuse were positively and significantly correlated with sexualized solicitation/interactions with adults. Victims with the overlapping of all three types of online victimization (2.7%, n = 98) presented the lowest HQRoL scores (p < .001).La solicitación e interacción sexual con menores por parte de adultos constituyen uno de los riesgos más perniciosos de Internet. Se sabe poco sobre la franja de edad en el que es más frecuente o sobre la relación y el solapamiento de este problema con otros riesgos, como la cibervictimización entre iguales y el abuso online en la pareja. Además, existen pocas evidencias empíricas sobre si el solapamiento entre estos tipos de victimización afecta a la calidad de vida relacionada con la salud (CVRS). Los objetivos de este estudio fueron: 1) analizar la prevalencia de la solicitación/interacción sexual en función del sexo y la etapa de la adolescencia, 2) relacionar esta problemática con la cibervictimización entre iguales y el abuso online en la pareja, 3) analizar el solapamiento entre estas formas de victimización online y sus diferencias en las puntaciones de CVRS. Se trata de un estudio transversal y analítico con 3,578 adolescentes (52.7% chicas) entre 10-15 años. El 12.6% (n = 448) habían recibido solicitaciones sexuales y el 6.4% (n = 230) había interactuado sexualmente con adultos. La solicitación sexual fue más frecuente en chicas en la adolescencia media. Un 33.9% (n = 1,216) había sufrido algún tipo de victimización online. La cibervictimización entre iguales y el abuso online en la pareja correlacionaron positiva y significativamente con solicitaciones/interacciones sexualizadas con adultos. Las víctimas que solaparon los tres tipos de victimización online (2.7%, n = 98) presentaron las puntuaciones de CVRS más bajas (p < .001)