The Smartphone Addiction Scale: Development and Validation of a Short Version for Adolescents

<div><p>Objective</p><p>This study was designed to investigate the revised and short version of the smartphone addiction scale and the proof of its validity in adolescents. In addition, it suggested cutting off the values by gender in order to determine smartphone addiction and elaborate the characteristics of smartphone usage in adolescents.</p><p>Method</p><p>A set of questionnaires were provided to a total of 540 selected participants from April to May of 2013. The participants consisted of 343 boys and 197 girls, and their average age was 14.5 years old. The content validity was performed on a selection of shortened items, while an internal-consistency test was conducted for the verification of its reliability. The concurrent validity was confirmed using SAS, SAPS and KS-scale. Receiver operating characteristics analysis was conducted to suggest cut-off.</p><p>Results</p><p>The 10 final questions were selected using content validity. The internal consistency and concurrent validity of SAS were verified with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.911. The SAS-SV was significantly correlated with the SAS, SAPS and KS-scale. The SAS-SV scores of gender (p<.001) and self-evaluation of smartphone addiction (p<.001) showed significant difference. The ROC analysis results showed an area under a curve (AUC) value of 0.963(0.888–1.000), a cut-off value of 31, sensitivity value of 0.867 and specificity value of 0.893 in boys while an AUC value of 0.947(0.887–1.000), a cut-off value of 33, sensitivity value of 0.875, and a specificity value of 0.886 in girls.</p><p>Conclusions</p><p>The SAS-SV showed good reliability and validity for the assessment of smartphone addiction. The smartphone addiction scale short version, which was developed and validated in this study, could be used efficiently for the evaluation of smartphone addiction in community and research areas.</p></div

Concurrent validity of SAS-SV.

<p>SAPS: Kim's Smartphone Addiction Proneness Scale.</p><p><i>p</i><.001.</p

Reliability for SAS-SV.

<p>Overall alpha = .911; Scale Mean = 25.26; SD = 10.78.</p

Socio-demographic characteristics and SAS-SV scores.

<p>^{a, b} : Scheffé test (the means with the same letter were significantly different).</p

Content Validity Index of SAS.

<p>I-CVI, item-level content validity index.</p><p>S-CVI/UA, scale-level content validity index, universal agreement calculation method.</p

Development and Validation of a Smartphone Addiction Scale (SAS)

<div><p>Objective</p><p>The aim of this study was to develop a self-diagnostic scale that could distinguish smartphone addicts based on the Korean self-diagnostic program for Internet addiction (K-scale) and the smartphone's own features. In addition, the reliability and validity of the smartphone addiction scale (SAS) was demonstrated.</p> <p>Methods</p><p>A total of 197 participants were selected from Nov. 2011 to Jan. 2012 to accomplish a set of questionnaires, including SAS, K-scale, modified Kimberly Young Internet addiction test (Y-scale), visual analogue scale (VAS), and substance dependence and abuse diagnosis of DSM-IV. There were 64 males and 133 females, with ages ranging from 18 to 53 years (M = 26.06; SD = 5.96). Factor analysis, internal-consistency test, t-test, ANOVA, and correlation analysis were conducted to verify the reliability and validity of SAS.</p> <p>Results</p><p>Based on the factor analysis results, the subscale “disturbance of reality testing” was removed, and six factors were left. The internal consistency and concurrent validity of SAS were verified (Cronbach's alpha = 0.967). SAS and its subscales were significantly correlated with K-scale and Y-scale. The VAS of each factor also showed a significant correlation with each subscale. In addition, differences were found in the job (p<0.05), education (p<0.05), and self-reported smartphone addiction scores (p<0.001) in SAS.</p> <p>Conclusions</p><p>This study developed the first scale of the smartphone addiction aspect of the diagnostic manual. This scale was proven to be relatively reliable and valid.</p> </div

Factor analysis of SAS.

*<p>A cutoff of 0.40 was used for inclusion.</p

Concurrent validity of SAS: Partial correlation analysis by controlling the level of education between the subscales of the SAS, K-scale, Y-scale, and VAS (N = 197).

**<p>p<.01</p