The Relationship between Stress, Personality, Dopamine Transporter, and Serotonin Transporter Level with Internet Addiction in Secondary School Students in Padang

Abstract

BACKGROUND: The unpleasant stress can cause a variety of mental disorder that will lead children to run away from real life and one of the way is using excessive internet. In the past few years, more interested in studying the negative effect of the internet. The development of internet has been very rapid and used to play games and make friendship, but it also has negative impact on people’s lives. Young refers to some of the symptoms of internet addiction that resembles the symptoms of substance addiction, causing physical and psychological problems. Several studies have tried to show a relationship between dopamine and internet addiction by measuring the level of dopamine transporter (DAT). Lee et al. (2008) showed that one homozygous short allele from the serotonin transporter (SERt) gene 5-hydroxytryptamine transporter (5 HTT)-linked polymorphic region is more frequent in excessive internet users. AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between stress, personality, DAT, and SERt level with internet addiction in secondary school students. METHODS: Methods applied in this study were a cross-sectional comparative design conducted in secondary school students in January 2016–March 2017 in Padang. The stress level was assessed using the depression anxiety and stress scale. Personality tests were measured using Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory for Adolescent. Internet addiction was assessed using the Young Internet Addiction Test. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to determine peripheral blood DAT and SERt or 5 HTT levels from the students who were diagnosed with stress. RESULTS: The results showed that personality was negatively associated with internet addiction (P = 0.271). Positive significant relationship of internet addiction was showed by association with levels of DAT (P = 0.001) and SERt (P = 0.001) in blood serum. DAT levels showed high relationship effect of stressed students become addicted to the internet. CONCLUSION: It is suggested that students were addicted to the internet as a coping mechanism against stress. Personality questionnaire tests failed to identify students who became addicted to the internet. The peripheral blood DAT and SERt level was predictive to identify students addicted to internet use. The present study supported the hypothesis that the DAT plays an important role in internet addiction.