Are problem internet users impulsive in the same way as smokers?
Students with problematic internet use and students who smoke were both more impulsive than peers, sharing trouble with focusing attention but differing on which other impulsive traits stood out.
Source
Profiles of Impulsivity in Problematic Internet Users and Cigarette Smokers
Study at a glance
- Design
- Cross-sectional — Two independent freshman cohorts from one Chinese university (2014 and 2017) completed internet-addiction, nicotine-dependence and impulsivity measures (BIS-11, UPPS-P, delay discounting); groups were compared and logistic regressions contrasted pure problematic internet users and pure smokers with non-smoking normal users
- N
- N=2315 · 2315 students after exclusions, pooled from two samples of 1281 (2014) and 1034 (2017); most analyses were run in each sample separately and the four-subgroup comparison on the pooled data
- Population
- First-year university students aged 18-23 in Guiyang, China, excluding those reporting psychiatric, neurological or illicit-drug history
- Outcome
- Self-reported impulsivity facets (BIS-11 and UPPS-P subscales) and delay-discounting rate as correlates and predictors of problematic internet use (IAT) and smoking status (FTND)
Structured fields used in claim comparison tables when every cited study has a complete layer.
What they did
The researchers surveyed two separate groups of first-year students at one Chinese university, three years apart. Students were classed as problematic or normal internet users with the Internet Addiction Test and as smokers or non-smokers with a nicotine dependence questionnaire. Everyone completed a pair of multi-facet impulsivity questionnaires (BIS-11 and UPPS-P) and a delay-discounting choice task, and the authors compared students with only problematic internet use, only smoking, both, or neither.
What they found
Both problematic internet users and smokers scored higher than non-smoking normal users on most impulsivity questionnaire facets, with larger differences for internet users (for example d = 0.81 for attentional impulsiveness) and no direct difference between the two groups. In regression models, attentional impulsiveness predicted both problems, while motor impulsiveness, lack of perseverance, lack of premeditation and negative urgency predicted only problematic internet use, and sensation seeking predicted only smoking. Delay discounting did not distinguish either group from controls, and the pattern replicated in both cohorts.
The limits
What it doesn't show
The design is cross-sectional, so it cannot tell whether impulsivity leads to problem use, results from it, or both. Group membership and impulsivity were based almost entirely on self-report questionnaires, including a cut-off score for problematic internet use rather than a clinical diagnosis, so shared method bias and social desirability are concerns. All students came from a single university in one Chinese city, and smokers were mostly male, which limits generalisation to other ages, cultures or clinical populations.
Key terms
- Problematic internet use
- Difficulty controlling internet use that causes psychological or social problems; debated as a possible behavioural addiction.
- Attentional impulsiveness
- A BIS-11 facet reflecting difficulty staying focused and racing or intrusive thoughts.
- Negative urgency
- A UPPS-P facet describing the tendency to act rashly when experiencing strong negative emotions.
- Sensation seeking
- A tendency to pursue novel, exciting and potentially risky experiences.
- Delay discounting
- The degree to which a person devalues a reward because it is delayed, shown by preferring smaller immediate over larger later rewards.
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Quiz yourself
Which impulsivity facet predicted both problematic internet use and smoking?
Common questions
Why compare internet users with smokers specifically?
Smoking is a substance addiction, so impulsive traits shared by both groups are likely general vulnerability markers, whereas traits seen only in smokers may relate to substance use itself.
Does this prove problematic internet use is a real addiction?
No. It shows overlap in one impulsivity facet with smoking, which is consistent with an addiction view, but similar traits do not by themselves establish a shared disorder.
Why include two cohorts three years apart?
Getting the same pattern in two independent samples checks that the findings are not a fluke of one group of students.
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