Abstract:

According to our recent proposal, Internet addiction in students is a multidimensional phenomenon, shaped by psychological and social well-being factors. The present study utilizes data from a large survey of 3,099 students at the University of Patras, designed to investigate the interrelationships between Internet addiction, burnout, anxiety, and depression. A specific subset of responses was subjected to a detailed analysis of the Internet Addiction Scale (IAT) to identify distinct behavioral profiles. The analysis incorporated the IAT alongside a number of confounding factors, including demographic factors: gender, age, year of study, academic preference, mode of admission, residence, nine categories of online activities: education, research, entertainment, social networking, professional development, online shopping, gambling, creativity, other and seven indicators of offline social life: meetings with friends, cultural events, going out, exercise, visits to libraries/museums, travel, theater/cinema.

A thorough examination of the IAT and its six dimensions using Factor Analysis of Mixed Data (FAMD) and k-means clustering revealed four distinct student profiles:
(1) Socially Active Students: The most vulnerable group, displaying the highest scores on the total IAT (1.78), Salience (1.36) and Neglect, indicating a dominant online presence that reduces academic and social functioning.
(2) Consumer-Oriented Socialites: Characterized by increased Excessive Use but the lowest Anticipation scores, suggesting a pattern driven more by consumer habits than emotional craving.
(3) Balanced Learners: They showed the highest Lack of Control (2.31) and significant neglect tendencies, revealing difficulties in self-regulation despite seemingly balanced use.
(4) Socially Engaged Learners: The most resilient group, with the lowest scores on all IAT dimensions, reflecting a sustainable harmony between online and offline life.

The main strength of this research lies in the application of the IAT’s multidimensional framework for empirically identify behavioral types. It demonstrates that specific combinations of addiction dimensions – and not simply the amount of Internet use – differentiate patterns of digital vulnerability and resilience in the student population.

Keywords:

Internet addiction, internet addiction test (IAT), university students, psychosocial profiles, digital behavior.