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A 2-year longitudinal study of prospective predictors of pathological Internet use in adolescents

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Abstract

Longitudinal studies of prospective predictors for pathological Internet use (PIU) in adolescents as well as its course are lacking. This three-wave longitudinal study was conducted within the framework of the European Union-funded project “Saving and Empowering Young Lives in Europe” over a 2-year period. The sample consisted of 1444 students at the baseline investigation (T0); 1202 students after 1 year (T1); and 515 students after 2 years (T2). Structured self-report questionnaires were administered at all three time points. PIU was assessed using the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire (YDQ). In addition, demographic (i.e., gender), social (i.e., parental involvement), psychological (i.e., emotional problems), and Internet use-related factors (i.e., online activities) were assessed as prospective predictors. The prevalence of PIU was 4.3 % at T0, 2.7 % at T1 and 3.1 % at T2. However, only 3 students (0.58 %) had persistent categorical PIU (YDQ score of ≥5) over the 2-year period. In univariate models, a variety of variables that have been previously identified in cross-sectional investigations predicted PIU at T2. However, multivariate regression demonstrated that only previous PIU symptoms and emotional problems were significant predictors of PIU 2 years later (adjusted R 2 0.23). The stability of categorical PIU in adolescents over 2 years was lower than previously reported. However, current PIU symptoms were the best predictor of later PIU; emotional symptoms also predicted PIU over and above the influence of previous problematic Internet use. Both PIU symptoms and emotional problems may contribute to the vicious cycle that supports the perpetuation of PIU.

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Acknowledgements

The SEYLE project was supported through Coordination Theme 1 (Health) of the European Union Seventh Framework Program (FP7), Grant Agreement Number HEALTH-F2-2009-223091. The authors acted independently from the funders in all aspects of study design, data analysis, and writing of this manuscript. The Project Leader and Coordinator of the SEYLE project is Professor of Psychiatry and Suicidology Danuta Wasserman, Karolinska Institutet (KI), Head of the National Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention of Mental Ill-Health and Suicide (NASP), at KI, Stockholm, Sweden. The project manager is Vladimir Carli, Senior Lecturer at the National Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention of Mental Ill-Health (NASP), KI, Stockholm, Sweden. Other members of the Executive Committee include Professor Marco Sarchiapone, Department of Health Sciences, University of Molise, Campobasso, Italy; Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Christina Hoven and Anthropologist Camilla Wasserman, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, New York State Psychiatric Institute and Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, USA. The site leader of the German SEYLE project was Romuald Brunner, and the site coordinator was Michael Kaess, both from the University of Heidelberg, Germany. The Medical Faculty of the University of Heidelberg supported the analyses.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany

    Esther Strittmatter, Peter Parzer, Romuald Brunner, Gloria Fischer, Franz Resch & Michael Kaess

  2. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Münster, Münster, Germany

    Esther Strittmatter

  3. National Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention of Mental Ill-Health (NASP), Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden

    Tony Durkee, Vladimir Carli & Danuta Wasserman

  4. Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Christina W. Hoven & Camilla Wasserman

  5. Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA

    Christina W. Hoven

  6. Department of Health Sciences, University of Molise, Campobasso, Italy

    Camilla Wasserman & Marco Sarchiapone

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  1. Esther Strittmatter
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  2. Peter Parzer
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  3. Romuald Brunner
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Correspondence to Michael Kaess.

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The study was approved by the national ethics committees and was performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments. All participants provided their informed consent prior to their inclusion in the study.

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Strittmatter, E., Parzer, P., Brunner, R. et al. A 2-year longitudinal study of prospective predictors of pathological Internet use in adolescents. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 25, 725–734 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-015-0779-0

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