Article / Frontiers in Public Health

The various forms of Internet use, including social networking, online shopping, gambling, and gaming are products of the time in which we live and represent an integral part of how we conduct and engage in social interaction. Internet platforms not only facilitate daily connection and efficient exchange of important information, but also provide educational functions and raise awareness of problems faced by individuals and societies globally. However, excessive use of Internet-related content has also increasingly been linked with mental health issues and aspects, such as addictive behavior, which is a central theme of this Research Topic.

Within this thematic unit, 51 papers were received, of which 20 were accepted for publication. It should be emphasized that distribution of the published articles by type was as following: 17 Original research, 2 Brief Research Report and 1 Hypothesis and Theory. The reviewers, who are distinguished scholars, helped a lot to successfully accomplish this Research Topic, and we thank them on this occasion as well.

The novel approaches, rigorous research methodologies and statistically significant findings, which are presented under this Research Topic, altogether speak in favor of the fact that Excessive Internet Use is quite problematic nowadays and that more care should be taken in how to deal with it. Although any internet-related addiction is not specifically identified in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) or International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), the growing body of literature suggest it shares a common underlying etiological framework with other (substance or behavioral) addictions.

In this regard, the connections between the excessive use of the Internet (especially social networks) with pronounced occurrences of various symptoms of mental health, as well as health in general, were unequivocally established.