Psychometric Properties of the Persian Internet Addiction Test-Social Networking Sites Version: Dimensionality Assessment of Social Networking Site Addiction

Background: by evaluating the psychometric properties of the persian version of the internet addiction test-social networking sites version (iat-sns) in a sample of iranian university students, this study investigated the dimensionality of sns addiction for the first time. methods: a total of 620 sns users (414 women) participated in the study. the study questionnaire comprised demographic information, sns usage patterns, the iat-sns, and the bergen social media addiction scale (bsmas). findings: exploratory factor analysis (efa) identified the 3-factor structure of the iat- sns, namely ‘lack of control’, ‘emotional and relational conflict’, and ‘preference for online relationships’ that explained 54% of the total variance. confirmatory factor analysis (cfa) verified the current model. problematic users on average exhibited higher scores on the whole iat-sns and each of the 3 factors as compared to non-problematic users. the iat-sns and its factors showed good internal consistency, and strong convergent and concurrent validity. conclusion: the persian version of the iat–sns is valid and reliable, and is applicable for measuring the 3 dimensions of sns addiction among students.