From overuse to self-control: impact of a psychosocial skills program in preventing internet addiction among Tunisian adolescents.
Introduction: Internet addiction can negatively affect adolescents’ daily life, relationships, and mental health. Prevention programs implementation is essential to promote healthy digital habits. Our study aims to assess the impact of implementing a psychosocial skills training program on the preve...
| Publicado en: | European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry pp. 1 - 12 |
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| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
| Formato: | Journal Article |
| Publicado: |
Springer Nature
Jun2026
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| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=194660316&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 194660316 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 10188827 EJ3 jtl: European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry issn: 10188827 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Jun2026 pid: 237 pub: Springer Nature place: New York, New York artinfo: ui: 194660316 10.1007/s00787-026-03098-0 194660316 ppf: 1 ppct: 11 formats: tig: atl: From overuse to self-control: impact of a psychosocial skills program in preventing internet addiction among Tunisian adolescents. aug: au: Ayoub, Randaline Belghith, Ameni Mlouki, Imen Habbachi, Wassila Skhiri, Haifa Skhiri, Oumayma Jerbi, Basma Bahri, Jamila Hochlaf, Hamed Trimech, Faouzia Abid, Hela Ben Ajmi, Maha Mhamdi, Sana El Guedria, Asma affil: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Fattouma Bourguiba University Hospital, University of Monastir sug: ab: Introduction: Internet addiction can negatively affect adolescents’ daily life, relationships, and mental health. Prevention programs implementation is essential to promote healthy digital habits. Our study aims to assess the impact of implementing a psychosocial skills training program on the prevention of internet addiction among Tunisian adolescents. Method: We conducted a pilot randomized controlled study among adolescents aged 15–16 from a high school in the Monastir region during the 2023–2024 school year. Participants were randomly assigned to an intervention group or a waiting-list group. The program focused on developing psychosocial skills with before and after assessments using validated tools: Young’s Internet Addiction Test and Internet Gaming Disorder Scale to assess internet addiction behaviors, Child Behavior Checklist to evaluate emotional and behavioral disorders, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale to measure self-esteem, and the Child and Youth Resilience Measure to assess resilience. Self-report questionnaires were completed anonymously, while parent-reported CBCL data were collected using unique participant codes to allow pre- and post-intervention matching while maintaining confidentiality. Results: A total of 58 adolescents participated in this study, including 27 in the intervention group and 31 in the waiting-list group. The sample comprised 25 boys and 33 girls. The mean age of the participants was 15.53 ± 0.50 years. Adolescents in the intervention group (n = 27) showed significant reductions in Internet addiction and Internet Gaming Disorder scores (p = 0.004, p = 0.003, respectively), as well as in both internalizing and externalizing behavioral problems (p = 0.001, p = 0.003, respectively), with increased self-esteem levels (p = 0.005). Resilience scores also improved, although not significantly. In contrast, the waiting-list group (n = 31) either showed no improvement or experienced a worsening in these areas. Intergroup comparisons favored the intervention group, particularly regarding addiction and behavioral regulation. Conclusion: Our results suggest that a school-based psychosocial skills training program may reduce internet addiction and improve emotional and behavioral functioning among adolescents. Larger randomized controlled trials with longer follow-up periods are warranted to confirm these findings. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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