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. 2014 Jun 4;9(6):e98312.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0098312. eCollection 2014.

Development and validation of the Smartphone Addiction Inventory (SPAI)

Yu-Hsuan Lin  1 , Li-Ren Chang  2 , Yang-Han Lee  3 , Hsien-Wei Tseng  4 , Terry B J Kuo  5 , Sue-Huei Chen  6
Affiliations

Development and validation of the Smartphone Addiction Inventory (SPAI)

Yu-Hsuan Lin et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to develop a self-administered scale based on the special features of smartphone. The reliability and validity of the Smartphone Addiction Inventory (SPAI) was demonstrated.

Methods: A total of 283 participants were recruited from Dec. 2012 to Jul. 2013 to complete a set of questionnaires, including a 26-item SPAI modified from the Chinese Internet Addiction Scale and phantom vibration and ringing syndrome questionnaire. There were 260 males and 23 females, with ages 22.9 ± 2.0 years. Exploratory factor analysis, internal-consistency test, test-retest, and correlation analysis were conducted to verify the reliability and validity of the SPAI. Correlations between each subscale and phantom vibration and ringing were also explored.

Results: Exploratory factor analysis yielded four factors: compulsive behavior, functional impairment, withdrawal and tolerance. Test-retest reliabilities (intraclass correlations = 0.74-0.91) and internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.94) were all satisfactory. The four subscales had moderate to high correlations (0.56-0.78), but had no or very low correlation to phantom vibration/ringing syndrome.

Conclusion: This study provides evidence that the SPAI is a valid and reliable, self-administered screening tool to investigate smartphone addiction. Phantom vibration and ringing might be independent entities of smartphone addiction.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

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