Prevalence of the Pathological Internet Use in a Sample of Turkish School Adolescents

Abstract

Background: The Internet addiction, also described as pathological Internet use (PIU), is conceptualized by an individual inability to control his or her use of the Internet, which eventually causes marked distress and/or functional impairment. The aim of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of the PIU among adolescence, in relation to different Internet activities, and to excessive use of the Internet in Samsun, Turkey.