Effectiveness of Psychological Treatments for Problematic Use of Internet, Video Games, Social Media and Instant Messaging: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Mateo Pérez-Wiesner (), Kora-Mareen Bühler, José Antonio López-Moreno () and Maria Dolores López-Salmerón
Additional contact information
Mateo Pérez-Wiesner: Department of Psychobiology and Methodology in Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Psychology, Somosaguas Campus, Complutense University of Madrid, 28223 Madrid, Spain
Kora-Mareen Bühler: Department of Psychobiology and Methodology in Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Psychology, Somosaguas Campus, Complutense University of Madrid, 28223 Madrid, Spain
José Antonio López-Moreno: Department of Psychobiology and Methodology in Behavioral Sciences, Faculty of Psychology, Somosaguas Campus, Complutense University of Madrid, 28223 Madrid, Spain
Maria Dolores López-Salmerón: Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Sciences—HM Hospitals, University Camilo José Cela, 28692 Madrid, Spain

IJERPH, 2025, vol. 22, issue 10, 1-19

Abstract: Adolescence is a developmental stage characterized by increased vulnerability to technology use. Several models have been proposed to explain the psychological processes involved in addictive use. In response to this evidence, therapeutic and preventive intervention programs aim to reduce key symptoms in order to promote health and protect adolescents. This study presents a systematic review and meta-analysis on the effectiveness of psychological therapeutic and preventive interventions for problematic use of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in adolescents (aged 10–21). A total of nine studies (five RCTs and four non-RCTs) with 744 participants were analyzed. The search was conducted following PRISMA guidelines and using the PICO framework. Included studies involved face-to-face or online psychological therapeutic and preventive interventions targeting adolescents, with a particular focus on cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Results indicate significant effects in favor of the experimental group in reducing symptoms associated with Internet, video game, social media, and instant messaging addiction, with pooled effect sizes of SMD = −1.53 (RCTs) and SMD = −1.13 (non-RCTs). Despite heterogeneity and potential publication bias, the evidence supports the effectiveness of these interventions, particularly CBT, family therapy, and executive function training. A multidisciplinary approach, early detection, and treatment personalization are recommended. Methodological limitations were identified, highlighting the need for more rigorous future research with attention to gender differences and cultural adaptation.

Keywords: psychological treatments; problematic use; video games; Internet; Internet Gaming; social media; cognitive behavioral therapy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/22/10/1598/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/22/10/1598/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:22:y:2025:i:10:p:1598-:d:1776337

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().