Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2005 Nov;193(11):728-33.
doi: 10.1097/01.nmd.0000185891.13719.54.

Proposed diagnostic criteria of Internet addiction for adolescents

Chih-Hung Ko  1 , Ju-Yu Yen, Cheng-Chung Chen, Sue-Huei Chen, Cheng-Fang Yen
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Proposed diagnostic criteria of Internet addiction for adolescents

Chih-Hung Ko et al. J Nerv Ment Dis. 2005 Nov.

Abstract

The aims of the present study were to develop diagnostic criteria of Internet addiction for adolescents and to examine the discriminating potential and validity of diagnostic criteria by an empirical community study among adolescent populations. We developed 13 candidate diagnostic criteria for characteristic symptoms of Internet addiction in adolescents. A total of 468 adolescents completed the Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS) and were systematically assessed for Internet-using behaviors by seven psychiatrists using the diagnostic interview schedule. The sensitivity, specificity, and diagnostic accuracy of the 13 candidate diagnostic criteria were analyzed with references to the interviewers' global clinical impressions and CIAS results. The cutoff point of the diagnostic criteria to differentiate the Internet-addicted subjects with nonaddicted ones was then determined by the best diagnostic accuracy and the receiver operating characteristic curve. This study selected nine of the 13 candidate diagnostic criteria to construct the diagnostic criteria of Internet addiction for adolescents, which were composed of three main criteria: characteristic symptoms of Internet addiction, functional impairment secondary to Internet use, and exclusive criteria. The diagnostic criteria had high diagnostic accuracy, specificity, negative predictive value, accepted sensitivity, and accepted positive predictive rate. The validity of the diagnostic criteria proposed in this study was further confirmed by comparing the demographic and Internet-using characteristics between those with and without Internet addiction. The diagnostic criteria for Internet addiction can provide health care professionals with a means to communicate and make comparisons of clinical cases.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources