Exercise, Internet Addiction, Randomized Clinical Trial, Tai Chi
Conditions
Brief summary
Internet addiction disorder (IAD) is an impulse-control disorder of Internet behavior in the absence of addictive substances. Exercise has been found to have significant advantages in improving the severity and depressive symptoms of IAD. The purpose of this study was to observe the efficacy of conventional exercise and tai chi in the treatment of Internet addiction and to observe the changes in each group. Subjects diagnosed with IAD were randomly assigned to the exercise group, the tai chi group, or the control group. The exercise group and tai chi group received conventional exercise and tai chi for 8 weeks. The Internet Addiction Test (IAT), the Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI), the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS), the Zung Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), and Fatigue Scale-14 (FS-14) were evaluated for all subjects at baseline and postintervention.
Detailed description
Over the past decade, with the rapid growth and popularity of the Internet, Internet addiction (IA) has increased. Nowadays, Internet addiction disorder (IAD) has become a significant social problem, especially among teenagers and young adults. IAD is an impulse-control disorder of Internet behavior in the absence of addictive substances, its typical symptoms are involved, including tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, large amounts of time spent online, interruption of social relations, and disorder of the biological clock. Western scholars have developed interventions for Internet addiction based on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Besides applying CBT treatment, Chinese psychologists also have developed trials to apply psychoanalytic group intervention, family therapy, sports exercise prescriptions, and Naikan therapy. Physical exercise (PE) interventions are known to facilitate cerebral blood and oxygen supply, enhance brain metabolism and neurotransmitter function and improve the balance of the nervous system, which in turn helps improve physical and mental adaptability. Active physical exercise is helpful to improve the symptoms of Internet addiction. Tai chi is a mind-body exercise that originated in China. It is a form of physical and mental training combining Chinese martial arts and meditative movements involving a series of slowly performed, continuous, and rhythmic movements that put a minimal impact on the joints of the body. This study aimed to validate the use of tai chi as an alternative approach to Internet addiction and compare the effectiveness of tai chi with conventional exercise. With both primary and secondary outcome measures, the effects of tai chi and exercise on Internet addiction can be more comprehensively analyzed, which will provide a basis for its future establishment as a non-pharmacological method for the treatment of Internet addiction.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALConventional Exercise and Tai Chi Exercise interventions
Subjects diagnosed with IAD were randomly assigned to the exercise group, the tai chi group, or the control group. The exercise group and tai chi group received conventional exercise and tai chi for 8 weeks.
Sponsors
Xueqing Zhang
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
TRIPLE (Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 22 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
1. participants were diagnosed with IAD according to the Internet Addiction Test; 2. the physical activity level of participants was low; 3. participants had no history of medication or psychotherapy.
Exclusion criteria
1. participants had a history of severe mental illness; 2. participants had a history of drug addiction; 3. participants regularly practiced moderate-intensity exercise.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Internet Addiction Test (IAT) | 2 months | The IAT is composed of 20 items with a 5-point scale (1 = very rarely, 5 = very frequently). IAT scores range from 20 to 100, with higher scores indicating higher levels of IA. Scores over 50 indicated a tendency of IA. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) | 2 months | The PSQI version used in the current study was a 19-item self-report retrospective questionnaire of the past 7 days designed to measure 7 domains called component scores: subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, habitual sleep efficiency, sleep disturbances, use of sleep medications, and daytime dysfunction. Component scores range from 0 (no difficulty) to 3 (severe difficulty). PSQI scores range from 0 to 21. Scores over 7 indicated a tendency for a sleep disorder. |
| Zung Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS) | 2 months | The SDS is composed of 20 items with a 4-point scale (1 = none or a little of the time, 4 = most or all of the time). A standardized scoring algorithm is used to define symptoms of depression, with a total score range of 20-80. The final index score was converted by multiplying the raw score by 1.25 and then rounding off decimal places. The severity of depression was categorized according to the index score: nil depression (index score \< 50), mild depression (index score 50-59), moderate depression (index score 60-69), and severe depression (index score≥70). |
| Zung Self-rating Anxiety Scale (SAS) | 2 months | The SAS is composed of 20 items with a 4-point scale (1 = none or a little of the time, 4 = most or all of the time). A standardized scoring algorithm is used to define symptoms of anxiety, with a total score range of 20-80. The final index score was converted by multiplying the raw score by 1.25 and then rounding off decimal places. The severity of anxiety was categorized according to the index score: nil anxiety (index score \< 50), mild anxiety (index score 50-59), moderate anxiety (index score 60-69), and severe anxiety (index score≥70). |
| Fatigue Scale-14 (FS-14) | 2 months | The FS-14 consists of 14 items, each of which is a fatigue-related question. The maximum total score is 14, and the higher the score, the more severe the fatigue. |
Countries
China
Outcome results
None listed