The German version of the Generalized Pathological Internet Use Scale 2: a validation study.

The Generalized Pathological Internet Use Scale (GPIUS2) assesses cognitive behavioral aspects of problematic Internet use. To date, the 15-item scale has only been available in English, and the aim of this study was to translate and validate a German version. An online sample (ON, n=1,041, age 24.2±7.2 years, 46.7% men) completed an Internet version of the translated GPIUS2, and a student sample (OF, n=841, age 23.5±3.0 years, 46.8% men) filled in a pencil and paper version. A third sample of 108 students (21.5±2.0 years, 25.7% men) completed the questionnaire twice to determine the 14-day retest reliability. Participants also answered questions regarding their Internet use habits (OF, ON) and depression, loneliness, and social anxiety (ON). The internal consistencies were α=0.91 (ON) and α=0.86 (OF). Item-whole correlations ranged from r=0.53 to r=0.69 (ON) and from r=0.39 to r=0.63 (OF). The 2 week retest reliability was rtt=0.85. Confirmatory factor analyses found a satisfactory fit for the factorial model proposed by Caplan for the original version. The GPIUS2 score correlated moderately with time spent on the Internet for private purposes in a typical week (ON: r=0.40; OF: r=0.36). Loneliness, depression, and social anxiety explained 46% of the variance in GPIUS2 scores. The German version of the GPIUS2 has good psychometric properties in a pencil and paper version as well as in a web-based format, and the observations regarding loneliness, depression, and social anxiety support the underlying model.