Internet addiction and internet gaming disorder levels as predictors of alexithymia traits among university students

Abstract

Background: Globally, there have been increasing concerns over internet addiction (IA) and internet gaming disorder (IGD) among young adults. Concurrently, alexithymia, a personality construct characterized by difficulty in recognizing, understanding, and expressing emotions, has been associated with a range of addictive disorders. Objectives: The study aims to identify the likely occurrence of alexithymia, IA, and IGD, and explore correlations between them among students in a medical and health sciences university in the United Arab Emirates. Methods: In this cross-sectional study; the 20-item Toronto alexithymia scale (TAS-20), the 9-item internet disorder scale short form (IDS9-SF), and the 9-item internet gaming disorder scale short form (IGDS9-SF) were used to assess 403 students aged 16–25 upon obtaining informed consent. Results: The possible occurrences of alexithymia, IA, and IGD were 29.528%, 5.21%, and 3.225% respectively, and 0.744% of the participants were likely to have all three simultaneously. We found a mutually positive correlation between the scores obtained in the three scales. Subsequent multiple linear regression analysis revealed that IA and IGD were positive predictors of alexithymia severity. Conclusion: We identified a significant occurrence of alexithymia, IA, and IGD in the sample, with IA and IGD being strong predictors of alexithymia. Identifying the occurrence and correlation of such conditions may aid in enabling early interventions, and provide a groundwork for future studies investigating preventive and novel therapeutic approaches.