Relationship Between Shyness and Generalized Pathological Internet Use Among Chinese School Students: The Serial Mediating Roles of Loneliness, Depression, and Self-Esteem

Following the recent changes to the diagnostic category for addictive disorders in DSM-5, it is urgent to clarify what constitutes behavioural addiction to have a clear direction for future research and classification. However, in the years following the release of DSM-5, an expanding body of research has increasingly classified engagement in a wide range of common behaviours and leisure activities as possible behavioural addiction. If this expansion does not end, both the relevance and the credibility of the field of addictive disorders might be questioned, which may prompt a dismissive appraisal of the new DSM-5 subcategory for behavioural addiction. We propose an operational definition of behavioural addiction together with a number of exclusion criteria, to avoid pathologizing common behaviours and provide a common ground for further research. The definition and its exclusion criteria are clarified and justified by illustrating how these address a number of theoretical and methodological shortcomings that result from existing conceptualizations. We invite other researchers to extend our definition under an Open Science Foundation framework.

Problematic Internet use (PIU), which has become a global social issue, can be broadly conceptualized as an inability to control one's use of the Internet which leads to negative consequences in daily life. The aim of this paper is to give a brief overview of the gradually evolving body of literature on PIU. This shows that the definitions and diagnostic criteria that have been proposed, and the assessment tools that have been developed, stress similarities between PIU, addictive behaviours and impulse-control disorders. Disagreements regarding diagnostic criteria and the lack of large epidemiological studies have resulted in difficulties in establishing the prevalence of PIU in the general population. Studies suggest high comorbidity rates between PIU and numerous psychiatric disorders highlighting the importance of focusing on comorbidity in treatment. There is growing evidence that genetic, personality and individual differences in automatic and controlled aspects of self-regulation may promote the development of PIU. Pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatments specific to PIU have received limited testing in large, rigorous studies however preliminary evidence suggests that both psychotropic medications (Escitalopram, Naltrexone and Methylphenidate) and cognitive behaviour therapy may have some utility in the treatment of PIU. More research is needed on areas which remain unclear and contribute to the prognosis of PIU, in particular the temporal relationships between psychiatric disorder and PIU, mechanisms of comorbidity and the more subtle psychological changes that occur through Internet use. © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.