Scales for internet addiction in spanish population: a proposal

Abstract

New technologies and internet use have generated such an intimated bound between users and their devices that an increasing preoccupation about problematic use and addiction has raised. Prevalence studies warn about values higher than 5% in the most restrictive studies. There are many differences in the study of this phenomenon attending to the methodology, conceptualization, object of study, device, or even on-line or off- ine use. This lack of consensus has generated a number of scales. An article as the present one proposing a minimum set of scales seems necessary. This article refers to some scales which seem adequate for Spanish population due to their easy application, their validity and their extension of use. We present the validated translations for the YIAT20 and the MPPUSA. We have also done a translation where it was not available a Spanish version for the CIAS and Ko’s criteria.