Problematic Internet Use Questionnaire-Short Form-6 (PIUQ-SF-6): Dimensionality, validity, reliability, measurement invariance and mean differences across genders and age categories among Nigerian adolescents

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to evaluate the psychometric properties, measurement invariance and mean differences in relation to the genders and age categories of the 6-item PIUQ-SF in a non-clinical sample of Nigerian adolescents (n = 1222; Mage = 15.77; Range = 12–18). There were 622 (50.9%) females. Most (79.1%) were in the middle adolescent age bracket. The respondents completed the PIUQ-SF-6 in addition to the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and the Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST). We applied confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to examine the fit indices of the three-factor a priori PIUQ-SF-6 model described in literature. Measurement invariances across genders and age categories were evaluated with nested multiple-group CFA (MGCFA). The three-dimensional model of the PIUQ-SF-6 appears to satisfactorily evaluate problematic usage of the internet among Nigerian adolescents (CFI = 0.985, SRMR = 0.0214, RMSEA = 0.055/90% CI = 0.036–0.077). The internal consistencies (α) of the PIUQ-SF-6 and its three subscales were modestly satisfactory. The concurrent validity of this model was also modestly supported via significant correlations with the other study measures. MGCFA supported the configural, metric and scalar measurement invariances of the PIUQ-SF-6 across genders and age categories. Males and those in the late adolescent age category have significant higher scores on the total PIUQ-SF-6. The PIUQ-SF-6 will be a useful instrument for the quantitative evaluation and comparisons of problematic usage of the internet among Nigerian adolescents.