Validity,Reliability,and Measurement Invariance of the Thai Smartphone Application-Based Addiction Scale and Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale

Background:In recent years,there has been increased research interest in both smartphone addiction and social media addiction as well as the development of psychometric instruments to assess these constructs.However,there is a lack of psychometric evaluation for instruments assessing smartphone addiction and social media addiction in Thailand.The present study evaluated the psychometric properties and gender measurement invariance of the Thai version of the Smartphone Application-Based Addiction Scale(SABAS)and Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale(BSMAS).Method:A total of 801 Thai university students participated in an online survey from January 2022 to July 2022 which included demographic information,SABAS,BSMAS,and the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short Form(IGDS9-SF).Results:Confirmatory Factor Analyses(CFAs)found that both the SABAS and BSMAS had a one-factor structure.Findings demonstrated adequate psychometric properties of both instruments and also supported measurement invariance across genders.Moreover,scores on the SABAS and BSMAS were correlated with scores on the IGDS9-SF.Conclusion:The results indicated that the SABAS and BSMAS are useful psychometric instruments for assessing the risk of smartphone addiction and social media addiction among Thai young adults.

Instruments Assessing Problematic Use of the Internet and Their Associations with Psychological Distress among Ghanaian University Students

Background:The present study evaluated the psychometric properties of Problematic Internet Use(PIU)instruments and their correlation with psychological distress and time spent on Internet activities among university students in Ghana.Methods:In the present cross-sectional survey design study,520 participants(35.96% female)were recruited with a mean age of 19.55 years(SD=1.94)from several university departments(i.e.,Behavioral Sciences,Materials Engineering,Nursing and Midwifery,and Biochemistry and Biotechnology)of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology(KNUST)between 19 July and 04 August,2023.Participants completed a survey that included the following measures:the Gaming Disorder Test(GDT),Gaming Disorder Scale for Adolescents(GADIS-A),Internet Gaming Disorder Scale-Short Form(IGDS9-SF),Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale(BSMAS),Smartphone Application Based Addiction Scale(SABAS),Nomophobia Questionnaire(NMP-Q),and the external criterion measure:Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21(DASS-21).Confirmatory factor analysis(CFA)was carried out to evaluate the structure of the instruments.Cronbach’s α,McDonald’s ω,and composite reliability were used to evaluate internal consistency.Pearson correlation was used to examine the associations between the scores of instruments assessing PIU,time spent on Internet activities,and the level of psychological distress.Results:Model fits confirmed the(i)unidimensional structure of the GDT,BSMAS,SABAS,IGDS9-SF,(ii)two-factor structure of the GADIS-A,and(iii)four-factor structure of the NMP-Q.Additionally,the study found that different types of PIU were significantly associated with psychological distress and time spent on related Internet activities.Conclusion:The six instruments validated in the present study demonstrated very good to excellent psychometric properties when applied to university students in Ghana.The significant associations between Internet-related disorders,time spent on Internet-related activities,and psychological distress highlight the importance of addressing issues of PIU among this population.

Tendency to Avoid Physical Activity and Sport:Associations with Weight Stigma,and Psychological Distress in a Two-Wave Longitudinal Study

Background:Physical inactivity is a major public health problem worldwide that results in physical and mental health problems.One major issue for physical inactivity is weight stigma(WS),especially perceived WS,which could lead to a tendency to avoid physical activity(PA).To better understand the association between perceived WS and PA,knowledge of the likely mediators in this association such as weight bias internalization(WBI)and psychological distress were investigated in the present study.Methods:Using a two-wave longitudinal study and convenient sampling,388 Taiwan residents participants(55%females;mean age=29.7 years[SD±6.3])completed two surveys six months apart.Body mass index(BMI),Perceived Weight Stigma Scale(PWSS),Weight Bias Internalization Scale(WBIS),Depression,Anxiety,Stress Scale(DASS-21),and Tendency to Avoid Physical Activity and Sport Scale(TAPAS)were assessed.Results:A mediation model controlling for age,gender,and BMI with 5000 bootstrapping resamples was performed.Perceived WS exerted significant direct effects on WBI(β=0.25;p<0.001),psychological distress(β=0.15;p=0.003),and tendency to avoid PA(β=0.10;p=0.027);WBI exerted a significant direct effect on tendency to avoid PA(β=0.47;p<0.001).Standardized indirect effects of WBI and psychological distress on the association between perceived WS and tendency to avoid PA were 0.12 and 0.01,respectively.Conclusion:Given the direct association of perceived WS on the tendency to avoid PA and the mediating role of WBI in this association,interventions addressing perceived WS and WBI may contribute to promoting PA.Therefore,health interventionists(both when planning and executing PA programs)need to consider weight stigmawhen encouraging physical activity.