Background The advent of COVID-19 worldwide has led to consequences for people’s health, both physical and psychological, such as fear and anxiety. This is the case in Italy, one of the countries most affected by the pandemic. Given the heightened fear concerning COVID-19 in Italy., the present study analyzed the psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale (FCV-19S). Methods The sample comprised 250 Italian participants who were administered Italian versions of the FCV-19S, the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), and the Severity Measure for Specific Phobia–Adult (SMSP-A). Several psychometric tests were performed to investigate the validity and reliability of the test including confirmatory factor analysis. Results Analysis of the data showed satisfactory psychometric characteristics and confirmed the scale’s unidimensional properties. The seven FCV-19S items had acceptable correlations with the test total (from .443 to .784). Furthermore, the loadings on the factor were significant and strong (from .684 to .897). The internal consistency was very good (α = .871). Construct validity for the FCV-19S was supported by significant and positive correlations with the HADS (r=.649) and SMSP-A (r=.703). Conclusions The Italian version of the Fear of COVID-19 Scale is valid and reliable in assessing fear of COVID-19 among the general Italian population.

Social media use, and specifically Facebook use, has become increasingly popular over the past decade. Despite the many benefits of social networking, a small minority of individuals appear to develop issues surrounding social media use, and more specifically Facebook use. It has, therefore, led some scholars to describe such problematic activity as a behavioral addiction. Such problematic behaviors have been reported in many countries including Italy. The present study validated and examined the reliability and validity of the Italian version of the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale (BFAS) by conducting a psychometric examination among an Italian sample of adults (n = 217; aged 18 to 68 years). Internal reliability was examined using various indicators, including Cronbach’s α, which was excellent (α = 0.94). Results indicated that Facebook addiction was significantly correlated with social media addiction, smartphone addiction, narcissism, depression, and self-esteem. The results of the present study support the use of the Italian version of the BFAS in research and confirms the uni-dimensional nature of the single factor proposed by the original authors.

Objectives: Problematic gaming has become a phenomenon of growing clinical relevance due to its negative impact on life and mental health outcomes. Much research has been carried out on its complex aetiology, and some studies have suggested that dispositional mindfulness, mind wandering, attentional control, and maladaptive personality traits may play some role, but they have never been included in the same prediction model. This study used Gaussian graphical models and Bayesian networks to investigate the pattern of association of these constructs and of background and gaming-related variables with problematic gaming in a sample of adult gamers. Method: Participants (n = 506) were administered an online survey comprising a questionnaire on background and gaming-related variables and the Gaming Disorder Test, the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire-15, the Mind Wandering-Spontaneous and Deliberate scales, the Attention Control-Distraction and Shifting scales, and the Personality Inventory for DSM-5-Brief Form. Results: Gaussian graphical models showed that problematic gaming was directly associated with Acting with Awareness, Disinhibition, Psychoticism, playing more than 30 hr a week, ability level, and playing strategy games. Bayesian networks indicated that the occurrence of high levels of problematic gaming directly depended on the presence of low scores on Acting with Awareness. Conclusions: The results suggest that one key feature of problematic gamers can be a high level of spontaneous thinking, either in the form of mind wandering or in the lack of Acting with Awareness, while maladaptive personality traits and attentional control seem to play a less central role.

Social phobia has often been associated with problematic social media use (PSMU) and problematic smartphone use (PSU). Studies have also shown an association between social phobia and self-esteem. However, no studies have analyzed the relationship between social phobia, self-esteem, PSMU, and PSU in an integrated model. The present study hypothesized that social phobia may influence PSMU and PSU through the role of self-esteem. A cross-sectional study comprising 400 Italians (74.75% female) with a mean age of 37.11 years (SD = ± 10.83) participated in the study that included Rosenberg’s Self-Esteem Scale, Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale, Severity Measure for Social Phobia Disorder, and Smartphone Application-Based Addiction Scale. The results indicated direct positive associations between social phobia and both types of problematic technology use (PSMU and PSU). The results also indicated that self-esteem was a partial mediator in this complex relationship, suggesting that excessive technology use could be a way to compensate for low self-esteem among individuals with social phobia. The present study contributes to the understanding of the psychological mechanisms underlying the relationship between social anxiety, self-esteem, and problematic technology use.

Excessive problematic sexual behavior in the form of compulsive sexual behavior disorder (CSBD), hypersexuality (HS), and sex addiction has gained increasing credibility in recent years and has led to the development of various psychometric instruments to assess such behavior. However, there is still considerable controversy over the operational definition of such concepts and whether they can be used interchangeably to describe the behavior. One recently developed tool is the Bergen–Yale Sex Addiction Scale (BYSAS) based on the “components model of addiction.” The present study validated the Italian version of the BYSAS. The BYSAS was administered to a large Italian-speaking sample of Italian adults [N = 1230, aged 18 to 67 years] along with psychometric instruments assessing the “Big Five” personality traits, self-esteem, depression, and two other measures of addictive sexual behavior (i.e., PATHOS and Shorter PROMIS Questionnaire–Sex Subscale). Confirmatory factorial analysis supported a one-factor solution. Furthermore, the scale had good internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.787). The BYSAS was positively associated with extroversion, openness to experience, depression, and problematic sexual behavior, and negatively associated with self-esteem, conscientiousness, emotional stability, agreeableness, and age. Based on the findings, the BYSAS is a brief, psychometrically reliable and valid measure for assessing sex addiction among Italian adults.

The present study examined the psychometric properties of the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (SWEMWBS). A total of 742 Italian participants (84.6% female), with a mean age of 33.08 years (SD = 12.44) took part in a cross-sectional survey study. Confirmatory factor analysis and Rasch analysis were used to examine the psychometric properties. The CFA showed that the SWEMWBS had a unidimensional structure with robust psychometric properties and showed good internal consistencies (Cronbach’s alpha 0.88; McDonald’s omega 0.91). Overall, most items showed no substantial differential item functioning in the Rasch analysis, except for Item 7, indicating that female participants reported more difficulty with this item than the male participants. The SWEMWBS was positively associated with life satisfaction and negativity associated with general psychological distress (i.e., anxiety, stress, and depression). In sum, the SWEMWBS showed robust psychometric properties capable of assessing positive aspects of mental health and well-being among Italian-speaking adults.