Abstract
Problematic Internet use (PIU) has been gradually recognized as a mental health issue among adolescents and young students. PIU shows many similarities with substance use disorders, but the shared and distinct mechanisms underlying them are unclear. The purpose of the current study was to explore the relationships between impulsive traits and PIU as well as cigarette smoking behaviors among young adults. Two independent samples of university students (N1 = 1281, N2 = 1034, respectively) over 3 years were assessed with multiple measurements of impulsivity, including the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11), the UPPSP Impulsive Behaviors Scale (UPPSP), and the Delay-discounting Test (DDT). Logistic regression models revealed that across the two independent samples, BIS-11 Attentional Impulsiveness was the common trait positively predicting both PIU and cigarette smoking. While BIS-11 Motor Impulsiveness as well as UPPSP Lack of Perseverance, Lack of Premeditation, and Negative Urgency were the typical traits linked to PIU as positive predictors, UPPSP Sensation Seeking was the unique trait linked to cigarette smoking as a positive predictor. These results suggested that specific dimensions of impulsivity might be concurrently implicated in PIU and cigarette smoking among young adults, putatively representing important trait marks for addictive behaviors.
Highlights
Problematic Internet use or pathological Internet use (PIU), regarded as Internet addiction (IA), is defined as an inability of individuals to control use of the Internet with various psychological and social problems (Young, 1998; Davis, 2001)
This study depicted the profiles of impulsivity in problematic Internet use (PIU) and cigarette smoking across two independent samples of Chinese college students
Our data showed that pure problematic Internet users (PIUs) had elevated scores than non-smoking normal Internet users (NIUs) on the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11) (Motor Impulsiveness, Attentional Impulsiveness, and Non-planning Impulsiveness) and on the UPPSP (Lack of Perseverance, Lack of Premeditation, Negative Urgency, and Positive Urgency)
Summary
Problematic Internet use or pathological Internet use (PIU), regarded as Internet addiction (IA), is defined as an inability of individuals to control use of the Internet with various psychological and social problems (Young, 1998; Davis, 2001). As a putative behavioral addiction similar with gambling disorder, PIU shares many clinical manifestations with substance use disorders (SUD), including excessive use of the Internet (e.g., excessive gaming and sexual preoccupations) with a loss of time sense, withdrawal symptoms (e.g., feelings of anger, tension, and depression), tolerance, and negative repercussions (Block, 2008) It is highly controversial whether PIU should be formally considered a new clinical disorder (Petry and O’brien, 2013), and more empirical studies are required to detect the shared and distinct aspects and mechanisms between PIU and SUD for a better comprehending of the nature of PIU
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