The digital addiction scale for children: psychometric properties of the Turkish version

Abstract

The increase in the use of digital devices among children in recent years has revealed the problem of digital addiction. The Digital Addiction Scale for Children (DASC) is used for early detection of the risk of digital addiction among children. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the Turkish version of the DASC. The data were collected from 670 children aged 9–14. Results supported acceptable goodness-of-fit indices for the one-dimensional factor structure of the DASC. Multi-group confirmatory factor analysis showed measurement invariance across gender. The Turkish version of the DASC indicated excellent internal consistency reliability, composite reliability, test-retest reliability, and adequate convergent and criterion-related validities. The results provided strong validity and reliability evidence, in line with the previous study, showing that the DASC is a psychometrically sound instrument to assess digital addiction in Turkish children and early adolescents.