Health response to problematic usage of the internet: A global survey on trends, available treatments and key challenges

ISAM-GEN Societies' Experts

doi:10.1556/2006.2025.00106

Health response to problematic usage of the internet: A global survey on trends, available treatments and key challenges

ISAM-GEN Societies' Experts

Department of Psychiatry

International Society of Addiction Medicine
Tehran University of Medical Sciences
University of St Andrews
University of Geneva
All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi
National Centre for Behavioural Addictions
Flinders University
Eötvös Loránd University
University of Gibraltar
Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust
University of Lausanne
University of Indonesia
University of Cape Town
University of Macau
Yale University
Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
Laureate Institute for Brain Research

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background and AimsProblematic usage of the internet (PUI) is a growing global concern, emerging among more than 5.3 billion people who use the internet worldwide. While specific forms such as online gaming and gambling are recognized as disorders or conditions for further study in diagnostic manuals, global data on prevalence, treatment, and health responses to PUI remain limited. This study aimed to obtain perspectives from representatives of addiction medicine/psychiatry societies regarding the scope, treatment, and health responses to PUI and identify gaps.MethodsA global survey was conducted through the International Society of Addiction Medicine's Global Expert Network (ISAM-GEN), involving addiction societies from 38 countries across Europe, Asia/Oceania, the Americas, and Africa. The survey assessed responses to non-specific PUI and five subtypes: online gaming, gambling, pornography, social media, and online shopping. It included case scenarios and questions on the significance and severity of PUI, and country-level health responses.ResultsOnline gambling (94.8%) and gaming (86.9%) were the most frequently reported PUI forms, followed by social media (84.2%), pornography (68.3%), and online shopping (52.6%). Psychotherapeutic approaches, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy, were the most widely available treatments, reported as accessible by over 70% of country respondents. Despite growing awareness—reflected in the formation of PUI interest groups in 44.7% of societies—gaps were reported, including lack of professional certification (78.9%), insufficient practitioner education (68.4%), and inadequate expert training (63.2%). Notably, 65.8% rated the 10-year severity of PUI as extremely or very important.Discussion & ConclusionGlobal attention to PUI is increasing, but more robust healthcare responses are needed. Addressing existing gaps requires enhanced training and sustainable international efforts.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	195-208
Number of pages	14
Journal	Journal of Behavioral Addictions
Volume	15
Issue number	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.2025.00106
State	Published - Mar 2026

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 The Author(s). Open Access statement. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium for non-commercial purposes, provided the original author and source are credited, a link to the CC License is provided, and changes – if any – are indicated.

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 3 Good Health and Well-being

Keywords

addictive behaviors
compulsive behaviors
gambling
global survey
impulsive behaviors
internet addiction
pornography
technology addiction
video games

Access to Document

10.1556/2006.2025.00106

Cite this

@article{2b6009d87d9b478a95c4f7ab878a63ed,

title = "Health response to problematic usage of the internet: A global survey on trends, available treatments and key challenges",

abstract = "Background and AimsProblematic usage of the internet (PUI) is a growing global concern, emerging among more than 5.3 billion people who use the internet worldwide. While specific forms such as online gaming and gambling are recognized as disorders or conditions for further study in diagnostic manuals, global data on prevalence, treatment, and health responses to PUI remain limited. This study aimed to obtain perspectives from representatives of addiction medicine/psychiatry societies regarding the scope, treatment, and health responses to PUI and identify gaps.MethodsA global survey was conducted through the International Society of Addiction Medicine's Global Expert Network (ISAM-GEN), involving addiction societies from 38 countries across Europe, Asia/Oceania, the Americas, and Africa. The survey assessed responses to non-specific PUI and five subtypes: online gaming, gambling, pornography, social media, and online shopping. It included case scenarios and questions on the significance and severity of PUI, and country-level health responses.ResultsOnline gambling (94.8\%) and gaming (86.9\%) were the most frequently reported PUI forms, followed by social media (84.2\%), pornography (68.3\%), and online shopping (52.6\%). Psychotherapeutic approaches, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy, were the most widely available treatments, reported as accessible by over 70\% of country respondents. Despite growing awareness{\textemdash}reflected in the formation of PUI interest groups in 44.7\% of societies{\textemdash}gaps were reported, including lack of professional certification (78.9\%), insufficient practitioner education (68.4\%), and inadequate expert training (63.2\%). Notably, 65.8\% rated the 10-year severity of PUI as extremely or very important.Discussion \& ConclusionGlobal attention to PUI is increasing, but more robust healthcare responses are needed. Addressing existing gaps requires enhanced training and sustainable international efforts.",

keywords = "addictive behaviors, compulsive behaviors, gambling, global survey, impulsive behaviors, internet addiction, pornography, technology addiction, video games",

author = "\{ISAM-GEN Societies' Experts\} and \{Khojasteh Zonoozi\}, Arash and Joe Schofield and Abolghasemi, \{Fateme Sadat\} and Sophia Achab and Atul Ambekar and Henrietta Bowden-Jones and Zsolt Demetrovics and Mohsen Ebrahimi and Fineberg, \{Naomi A.\} and Yasser Khazaal and Lee, \{Hae Kook\} and Kristiana Siste and Stein, \{Dan J.\} and Wu, \{Anise M.S.\} and Mehran Zare-Bidoky and Potenza, \{Marc N.\} and Hamed Ekhtiari and Baldacchino, \{Alexander Mario\}",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2025 The Author(s). Open Access statement. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium for non-commercial purposes, provided the original author and source are credited, a link to the CC License is provided, and changes {\textendash} if any {\textendash} are indicated.",

year = "2026",

month = mar,

doi = "10.1556/2006.2025.00106",

language = "English",

volume = "15",

pages = "195--208",

journal = "Journal of Behavioral Addictions",

issn = "2062-5871",

publisher = "Akademiai Kiado",

number = "1",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Health response to problematic usage of the internet

T2 - A global survey on trends, available treatments and key challenges

AU - ISAM-GEN Societies' Experts

AU - Khojasteh Zonoozi, Arash

AU - Schofield, Joe

AU - Abolghasemi, Fateme Sadat

AU - Achab, Sophia

AU - Ambekar, Atul

AU - Bowden-Jones, Henrietta

AU - Demetrovics, Zsolt

AU - Ebrahimi, Mohsen

AU - Fineberg, Naomi A.

AU - Khazaal, Yasser

AU - Lee, Hae Kook

AU - Siste, Kristiana

AU - Stein, Dan J.

AU - Wu, Anise M.S.

AU - Zare-Bidoky, Mehran

AU - Potenza, Marc N.

AU - Ekhtiari, Hamed

AU - Baldacchino, Alexander Mario

N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2025 The Author(s). Open Access statement. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium for non-commercial purposes, provided the original author and source are credited, a link to the CC License is provided, and changes – if any – are indicated.

PY - 2026/3

Y1 - 2026/3

N2 - Background and AimsProblematic usage of the internet (PUI) is a growing global concern, emerging among more than 5.3 billion people who use the internet worldwide. While specific forms such as online gaming and gambling are recognized as disorders or conditions for further study in diagnostic manuals, global data on prevalence, treatment, and health responses to PUI remain limited. This study aimed to obtain perspectives from representatives of addiction medicine/psychiatry societies regarding the scope, treatment, and health responses to PUI and identify gaps.MethodsA global survey was conducted through the International Society of Addiction Medicine's Global Expert Network (ISAM-GEN), involving addiction societies from 38 countries across Europe, Asia/Oceania, the Americas, and Africa. The survey assessed responses to non-specific PUI and five subtypes: online gaming, gambling, pornography, social media, and online shopping. It included case scenarios and questions on the significance and severity of PUI, and country-level health responses.ResultsOnline gambling (94.8%) and gaming (86.9%) were the most frequently reported PUI forms, followed by social media (84.2%), pornography (68.3%), and online shopping (52.6%). Psychotherapeutic approaches, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy, were the most widely available treatments, reported as accessible by over 70% of country respondents. Despite growing awareness—reflected in the formation of PUI interest groups in 44.7% of societies—gaps were reported, including lack of professional certification (78.9%), insufficient practitioner education (68.4%), and inadequate expert training (63.2%). Notably, 65.8% rated the 10-year severity of PUI as extremely or very important.Discussion & ConclusionGlobal attention to PUI is increasing, but more robust healthcare responses are needed. Addressing existing gaps requires enhanced training and sustainable international efforts.

AB - Background and AimsProblematic usage of the internet (PUI) is a growing global concern, emerging among more than 5.3 billion people who use the internet worldwide. While specific forms such as online gaming and gambling are recognized as disorders or conditions for further study in diagnostic manuals, global data on prevalence, treatment, and health responses to PUI remain limited. This study aimed to obtain perspectives from representatives of addiction medicine/psychiatry societies regarding the scope, treatment, and health responses to PUI and identify gaps.MethodsA global survey was conducted through the International Society of Addiction Medicine's Global Expert Network (ISAM-GEN), involving addiction societies from 38 countries across Europe, Asia/Oceania, the Americas, and Africa. The survey assessed responses to non-specific PUI and five subtypes: online gaming, gambling, pornography, social media, and online shopping. It included case scenarios and questions on the significance and severity of PUI, and country-level health responses.ResultsOnline gambling (94.8%) and gaming (86.9%) were the most frequently reported PUI forms, followed by social media (84.2%), pornography (68.3%), and online shopping (52.6%). Psychotherapeutic approaches, particularly cognitive behavioral therapy, were the most widely available treatments, reported as accessible by over 70% of country respondents. Despite growing awareness—reflected in the formation of PUI interest groups in 44.7% of societies—gaps were reported, including lack of professional certification (78.9%), insufficient practitioner education (68.4%), and inadequate expert training (63.2%). Notably, 65.8% rated the 10-year severity of PUI as extremely or very important.Discussion & ConclusionGlobal attention to PUI is increasing, but more robust healthcare responses are needed. Addressing existing gaps requires enhanced training and sustainable international efforts.

KW - addictive behaviors

KW - compulsive behaviors

KW - gambling

KW - global survey

KW - impulsive behaviors

KW - internet addiction

KW - pornography

KW - technology addiction

KW - video games

UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105031114596

U2 - 10.1556/2006.2025.00106

DO - 10.1556/2006.2025.00106

M3 - Article

C2 - 41723753

AN - SCOPUS:105031114596

SN - 2062-5871

VL - 15

SP - 195

EP - 208

JO - Journal of Behavioral Addictions

JF - Journal of Behavioral Addictions

IS - 1

ER -

Health response to problematic usage of the internet: A global survey on trends, available treatments and key challenges

Abstract

Bibliographical note

UN SDGs

Keywords

Access to Document

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this