Relationship between Internet addiction and sleep disturbance in high school students: a cross-sectional study
Abstract Background: Worldwide, the increase in the number of Internet users has increased Internet dependence. In adolescents, this dependence interferes with sleep, which is important for the development of psychophysiological capabilities. However, few large-scale surveys have descriptively examined the relationship between Internet addiction (IA) and sleep disturbance using standardized questionnaires. We conducted this study to determine the relationship between sleep disturbance in adolescents and IA based on the categories of the Young Diagnostic Questionnaire (YDQ) through a complete survey of one prefecture in Japan. Methods: In 2016, a self-report questionnaire was used to survey high school students (n=10,405, age range: 15–16 years) in all 54 day-boarding high schools in the selected prefecture. We defined “sleep disturbance” by scores greater than 5.5 points on the Japanese version of the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. IA was evaluated using the YDQ: “IA,” when 5 of the 8 YDQ items were present; “at-risk,” when either 3 or 4 YDQ items were reported; and “non-IA,” when less than 2 YDQ items were positive. Multiple logistic regression analysis was undertaken with sleep disturbance as the dependent variable, IA as the explanatory variable, and adjustments for 8 items. Results: High YDQ scores were associated with high prevalence rates of sleep disturbance in both male and female participants. These findings persisted after controlling for other factors in the multiple regression model. Conclusions: Among Japanese adolescents, there exists a significant independent relationship between IA and sleep disturbances.