Which assessment for dedicated services for adolescents with PSU? A case-study report.

Background: The smartphone use is increasing as an integral part of human life, with benefits for daily tasks (e.g., communication, access to entertainment and work activities). However, some concerns are arising regarding potentially maladaptive patterns of use and/or negative consequences for individuals’ mental health, including anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbances. Evidence has shown that the uncontrolled use of smartphone would lead to undesirable impacts on adolescent growth and development. The clinical attention to Problematic Smartphone Use (PSU) is increasing and some psychotherapy services to deal with the misuse of smartphones and PSU for adolescents are emerging. However, to avoid over-pathologizing daily life activities on the smartphone it is necessary to carry out a multidimensional assessment able to combine different approaches and to highlight the severity of functional impairment as well as the underlying psychological (e.g., cognitive, affective, motivational) processes. In this perspective, this study aims to present a method for the multidimensional assessment designed for a PSU psychotherapy service in Italy according to the I-PACE model. Methods: At present, the study enrolled forty-two patients (20 males) referred to a psychotherapy service in Palermo, Italy, specifically designed for PSU in adolescents and pre-adolescents (aged 11- 18) and funded by “CON IL SUD” Foundation. More specifically, this contribution will show how similar PSU indicators can reveal different psychological profiles. For this purpose, Time spent on the device, Smartphone Addiction, and Social Media Addiction were used as PSU indicators and patients with the same score on each indicator were compared to highlight individual differences in their functional impairment (i.e., boredom, difficulties in emotion regulation, impulsive behaviour, and adolescents’ psychopathology). Results: Paired comparisons among patients highlight that some patients, despite their similarity in one of the three PSU indicators, show very different profiles in their functional impairment, especially regarding psychopathology, boredom and motivation for social media use. Discussion: Preliminary results suggest that problematic behaviors could not be defined based on a single criterion. The idiographic examination of patients referred to specialized services for the treatment of PSU contributes to enhancing a theoretical framework that takes into consideration the interplay of various components. The study highlights the need for a multi-dimensional assessment approach, designed to explore the various facets of PSU.