School-based prevention for adolescent Internet addiction: prevention is the key. A systematic literature review

Adolescents’ media use represents a normative need for information, communication, recreation and functionality, yet problematic Internet use has increased. Given the arguably alarming prevalence rates worldwide and the increasingly problematic use of gaming and social media, the need for an integration of prevention efforts appears to be timely. The aim of this systematic literature review is (i) to identify school-based prevention programmes or protocols for Internet Addiction targeting adolescents within the school context and to examine the programmes’ effectiveness, and (ii) to highlight strengths, limitations, and best practices to inform the design of new initiatives, by capitalizing on these studies’ recommendations. The findings of the reviewed studies to date presented mixed outcomes and are in need of further empirical evidence. The current review identified the following needs to be addressed in future designs to: (i) define the clinical status of Internet Addiction more precisely, (ii) use more current psychometrically robust assessment tools for the measurement of effectiveness (based on the most recent empirical developments), (iii) reconsider the main outcome of Internet time reduction as it appears to be problematic, (iv) build methodologically sound evidence-based prevention programmes, (v) focus on skill enhancement and the use of protective and harm-reducing factors, and (vi) include IA as one of the risk behaviours in multi-risk behaviour interventions. These appear to be crucial factors in addressing future research designs and the formulation of new prevention initiatives. Validated findings could then inform promising strategies for IA and gaming prevention in public policy and education

Supplementary Material for: The WHO-5 Well-Being Index: A Systematic Review of the Literature

<b><i>Background:</i></b> The 5-item World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5) is among the most widely used questionnaires assessing subjective psychological well-being. Since its first publication in 1998, the WHO-5 has been translated into more than 30 languages and has been used in research studies all over the world. We now provide a systematic review of the literature on the WHO-5. <b><i>Methods:</i></b> We conducted a systematic search for literature on the WHO-5 in PubMed and PsycINFO in accordance with the PRISMA guidelines. In our review of the identified articles, we focused particularly on the following aspects: (1) the clinimetric validity of the WHO-5; (2) the responsiveness/sensitivity of the WHO-5 in controlled clinical trials; (3) the potential of the WHO-5 as a screening tool for depression, and (4) the applicability of the WHO-5 across study fields. <b><i>Results:</i></b> A total of 213 articles met the predefined criteria for inclusion in the review. The review demonstrated that the WHO-5 has high clinimetric validity, can be used as an outcome measure balancing the wanted and unwanted effects of treatments, is a sensitive and specific screening tool for depression and its applicability across study fields is very high. <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> The WHO-5 is a short questionnaire consisting of 5 simple and non-invasive questions, which tap into the subjective well-being of the respondents. The scale has adequate validity both as a screening tool for depression and as an outcome measure in clinical trials and has been applied successfully across a wide range of study fields

Absolute metabolite quantification by in vivo NMR spectroscopy:II. A multicentre trial of protocols for in vivo localised proton studies of human brain

We have performed a multicentre trial to assess the performance of three techniques for absolute quantification of cerebral metabolites using in vivo proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The techniques included were 1) an internal water standard method, 2) an external standard method based on phantom replacement, and 3) a more sophisticated method incorporating elements of both the internal and external standard approaches, together with compartmental analysis of brain water. Only the internal water standard technique could be readily implemented at all participating sites and gave acceptable precision and interlaboratory reproducibility. This method was insensitive to many of the experimental factors affecting the performance of the alternative techniques, including effects related to loading, standing waves and B1 inhomogeneities; and practical issues of phantom positioning, user expertise and examination duration. However, the internal water standard method assumes a value for the concentration of NMR-visible water within the spectroscopic volume of interest. In general, it is necessary to modify this assumed concentration on the basis of the grey matter, white matter and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) content of the volume, and the NMR-visible water content of the grey and white matter fractions. Combining data from 11 sites, the concentrations of the principal NMR-visible metabolites in the brains of healthy subjects (age range 20-35 years) determined using the internal water standard method were (mean ± SD): [NAA] = 10.0 ± 3.4 mM (n = 53), [tCho] = 1.9 ± 1.0 mM (n = 51), [Cr + PCr] = 6.5 ± 3.7 mM (n = 51). Evidence of system instability and other sources of error at some participating sites reinforces the need for rigorous quality assurance in quantitative spectroscopy

Absolute metabolite quantification by in vivo NMR spectroscopy:II. A multicentre trial of protocols for in vivo localised proton studies of human brain

We have performed a multicentre trial to assess the performance of three techniques for absolute quantification of cerebral metabolites using in vivo proton nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The techniques included were 1) an internal water standard method, 2) an external standard method based on phantom replacement, and 3) a more sophisticated method incorporating elements of both the internal and external standard approaches, together with compartmental analysis of brain water. Only the internal water standard technique could be readily implemented at all participating sites and gave acceptable precision and interlaboratory reproducibility. This method was insensitive to many of the experimental factors affecting the performance of the alternative techniques, including effects related to loading, standing waves and B1 inhomogeneities; and practical issues of phantom positioning, user expertise and examination duration. However, the internal water standard method assumes a value for the concentration of NMR-visible water within the spectroscopic volume of interest. In general, it is necessary to modify this assumed concentration on the basis of the grey matter, white matter and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) content of the volume, and the NMR-visible water content of the grey and white matter fractions. Combining data from 11 sites, the concentrations of the principal NMR-visible metabolites in the brains of healthy subjects (age range 20-35 years) determined using the internal water standard method were (mean ± SD): [NAA] = 10.0 ± 3.4 mM (n = 53), [tCho] = 1.9 ± 1.0 mM (n = 51), [Cr + PCr] = 6.5 ± 3.7 mM (n = 51). Evidence of system instability and other sources of error at some participating sites reinforces the need for rigorous quality assurance in quantitative spectroscopy

School-based prevention for adolescent Internet addiction: prevention is the key. A systematic literature review

Adolescents’ media use represents a normative need for information, communication, recreation and functionality, yet problematic Internet use has increased. Given the arguably alarming prevalence rates worldwide and the increasingly problematic use of gaming and social media, the need for an integration of prevention efforts appears to be timely. The aim of this systematic literature review is (i) to identify school-based prevention programmes or protocols for Internet Addiction targeting adolescents within the school context and to examine the programmes’ effectiveness, and (ii) to highlight strengths, limitations, and best practices to inform the design of new initiatives, by capitalizing on these studies’ recommendations. The findings of the reviewed studies to date presented mixed outcomes and are in need of further empirical evidence. The current review identified the following needs to be addressed in future designs to: (i) define the clinical status of Internet Addiction more precisely, (ii) use more current psychometrically robust assessment tools for the measurement of effectiveness (based on the most recent empirical developments), (iii) reconsider the main outcome of Internet time reduction as it appears to be problematic, (iv) build methodologically sound evidence-based prevention programmes, (v) focus on skill enhancement and the use of protective and harm-reducing factors, and (vi) include IA as one of the risk behaviours in multi-risk behaviour interventions. These appear to be crucial factors in addressing future research designs and the formulation of new prevention initiatives. Validated findings could then inform promising strategies for IA and gaming prevention in public policy and education