Internet addiction disorder (IAD)

Internet addiction disorder (IAD), or, more broadly, Internet overuse, problematic computer use or pathological computer use, is excessive computer use that interferes with daily life


Over the past decade, the concept of Internet addiction has grown in terms of acceptance as a legitimate clinical disorder often requiring treatment

Internet Addiction Test

The Internet Addiction Test (IAT) is the first validated instrument to assess Internet addiction. Studies have found that the IAT is a reliable measure that covers the key characteristics of pathological online use. The test measures the extent of a client’s involvement with the computer and classifies the addictive behavior in terms of milled, moderate, and severe impairment. 

The IAT can be utilized in outpatient and inpatient settings and adapted accordingly to fit the needs of the clinical setting. Furthermore, beyond validation in English, the IAT has also been validated in Italy (Ferraro, Caci, D' Amico, & Di Blasi, 2007 and France (Khazaal et al., 2008) making it the first global psychometric measure.

The test consists of twenty questions with the responses graded out of 5, which produces a score from 0 to 100.

Brain Imaging on Adolescence with Internet Addiction Disorder - courtesy: http://english.wipm.cas.cn/rh/rp/201201/t20120121_81009.html - Dr. Lei Hao and colleagues found structural abnormalities in both white matter and gray matter of IAD adolescents’ brain, and most of them appeared in the left hemisphere. These discoveries could help understanding IAD.

Griffiths criteria

Mark D Griffiths' six criteria of Internet addiction are:

1. Salience: Using the Internet dominates the person’s life, feelings and behaviour.
2. Mood modification: The person experiences changes in mood (e.g. a ‘buzz’) when using the Internet.
3. Tolerance: Increasing amounts of Internet use are needed to achieve the same effects on mood.
4. Withdrawal symptoms: If the person stops using the Internet, they experience unpleasant feelings or physical effects.
5. Conflict: Using the Internet causes conflicts with those close to the person, or with their everyday life (e.g. their job, social life or hobbies).
6. Relapse: The addict tends to relapse into earlier patterns of behaviour, even after years of abstinence or control.

We will talk about dealing with this soon.... No turn off the computer and go enjoy some physical activity!