Updated
Original VAYEMA symptom and impact self-check – not a validated scale
Internet use and daily life
Answer the symptom statements below to see which experiences and areas of daily life you report as most affected. These are original VAYEMA questions, not a validated diagnostic scale. No clinical severity or probability score is calculated.
Answers are processed only in this page by this assessment. They are not submitted, monitored or automatically saved. No name, email or account is required. Use a private device and clear your answers when finished.
For adults aged 18 and over. This self-check cannot diagnose or rule out a condition. Concerns about a child require an age-appropriate professional assessment.
Thinking about the past four weeks, how well does each statement describe your experience?
Additional context – not included in any questionnaire score
These are original VAYEMA questions, not a diagnostic instrument or a validated severity scale. They summarise the experiences you select and do not predict a diagnosis or future harm. Background condition information; this source does not endorse this self-check.
Identify the activity rather than diagnose the device
A clinician should ask whether the main concern is gaming, gambling, shopping, social networking, sexual content, information searching or another activity. The device itself does not explain why a pattern is difficult. A person can use the same phone for essential healthcare access and a repetitive behaviour that is causing harm. Treating both as one total may obscure the useful clinical question.
The WHO description of gaming disorder concerns a specific behaviour rather than all internet use. Assessment should identify the relevant framework and explain its limits. You can seek help with distress or impairment even when no formal addiction diagnosis is established. The purpose is a clearer understanding and an appropriate next step, not forcing every digital concern into the same category.
Describe the pattern within your ordinary life
Useful preparation can include when the activity happens, what you intended and what usually follows. Explain work, education, caring responsibilities, accessibility needs and meaningful relationships that depend on digital access. These details help distinguish necessary use from the part you want to change. An unusually busy work week or a holiday may not represent the same pattern as ordinary life.
A few examples are enough to begin. You might describe repeatedly delaying bed, missing a task or moving between applications despite intending to stop. Include occasions when you can disengage without difficulty. The clinician can consider those differences rather than rely only on the worst day. There is no requirement to buy tracking software, produce an exact total or prepare a complete digital history before requesting support.
Control and consequences matter alongside time
The assessor asks how much flexibility you have and what is being displaced. A high total alone does not establish a disorder, while a shorter activity may still have significant consequences if it repeatedly disrupts an essential responsibility. The meaning of the behaviour depends on its context, persistence and effects. A device report can inform the conversation but cannot supply that interpretation by itself.
Consider whether the concern is about time, preoccupation, money, avoidance, conflict or several things together. For example, a person who spends hours working online has a different assessment need from someone repeatedly gambling during work. Neither the shared device nor the similar duration makes the clinical questions identical. The understanding guide explains the wider distinction without diagnosing your individual pattern.
Ask what the online activity provides
Online spaces can offer connection, information, structure and participation that may be difficult to obtain elsewhere. An assessment should recognise those benefits. The question is how they fit with health and daily life, not whether digital relationships count. Understanding what would be lost during a change helps the professional recommend a plan that is realistic rather than simply removing an activity.
You may notice that some use feels chosen and meaningful while another part feels repetitive or difficult to stop. Explain that difference. A clinician can explore what you want to preserve and what you want to change without requiring complete disconnection. It is also acceptable to be unsure about your goals. Clarifying ambivalence and practical barriers is part of the appointment, not evidence that you are unready to receive help.
Look for activity-specific concerns and other explanations
Repeated gambling, buying or gaming may need more specific assessment. Searching for reassurance about health can involve a different pattern from entertainment browsing. The professional should ask about the function of the behaviour and relevant symptoms rather than apply a generic addiction explanation. Several concerns can coexist, but that does not mean every linked article or questionnaire must be completed.
The gambling, gaming and buying assessment guides describe related questions. Bring the concerns that matter most to one clinical conversation and ask which further assessment would be useful. This can prevent duplication and help the care team distinguish several activities from several separate disorders.
Health, mood and sleep belong in the conversation
An assessment may explore low mood, anxiety, sleep, medication, substances and physical symptoms. The timing can help clarify how they interact with online activity. A clinician should not assume the internet caused every concern, or that a psychiatric explanation makes physical symptoms unimportant. New or severe symptoms may require appropriate medical attention independently of the digital pattern.
The sleep assessment guide explains why choosing to stay online, being unable to sleep and other sleep conditions are different questions. Describe daytime effects and responsibilities affected by tiredness. Do not drive or undertake hazardous tasks when sleepy or impaired. A useful assessment considers health and practical circumstances together instead of treating a screen-time rule as the answer to every difficulty.
Why online test results can differ
Questionnaires vary in wording, timeframe, target activity and cut-off. A 2024 study of activity-specific internet-use screening found differences between instruments in classification. That does not make all measurement useless; it means results need appropriate interpretation. A total alone cannot establish cause, distinguish every condition or determine which care setting is suitable.
The prompts here are not a validated screening scale or an adapted version of the Internet Addiction Test. They have no score or diagnostic probability. Repeating quizzes until they agree may not resolve the concern. Bring any results as optional background, but focus on the experiences behind them. You can seek assessment with no test result, and a low score should not prevent a conversation about a pattern that is affecting your life.
Family observations and privacy need clear boundaries
A relative may notice interrupted conversations, missed commitments or changes in routines. Their observations can contribute when appropriate, but should be distinguished from assumptions about what you feel or intend. An adult’s own account remains important. A clinician should clarify what can be shared, whether private time is available and the purpose of any joint appointment.
For a younger person, age-appropriate expertise, consent and safeguarding arrangements need to be confirmed. Family support can also focus on relatives’ own concerns without diagnosing an absent person. Secretly collecting messages or demanding passwords is not a routine requirement for assessment. If conflict involves intimidation or danger, appropriate safety support takes priority over a standard discussion of digital boundaries.
What the assessment should lead to
Ask for a working understanding, any uncertainty and an explanation of the recommended next step. The plan may involve activity-focused therapy, care for another condition, practical support or specialist referral. It should identify who provides each part, initial frequency, costs and review arrangements. A diagnosis alone is not a complete care plan, and a screening category should not automatically allocate a large programme.
The treatment guide discusses psychological and practical approaches. A clinical trial of outpatient CBT illustrates that specific interventions have been studied, not that all online habits share a proven universal cure. Ask how the professional connects the evidence with your activity and circumstances, and how they will reconsider the approach if it does not help.
Use the worksheet only as much as it helps
Record broad observations and the questions you want answered. You can leave prompts blank, clear the text or choose a private download. The notes are not sent to VAYEMA or added to an inquiry record. A downloaded file remains on your device and needs to be stored privately. Avoid unnecessary personal information, particularly on a shared computer or phone.
A VAYEMA assessment inquiry can discuss suitable expertise and practical arrangements. Preparation is optional. Serious self-neglect, immediate danger or inability to remain safe needs appropriate urgent local care rather than a routine message or another online result. The tool does not monitor for risk or send alerts. Its role is to make a planned clinical conversation clearer, not delay necessary help.
Frequently asked questions about internet-use assessment
Does this page calculate an internet addiction score?
No. It offers original, unscored preparation prompts rather than a validated diagnostic questionnaire. The tool does not determine a condition, severity or safe amount of use. A professional assessment needs to consider the activity, context, consequences and other relevant health needs.
Should I bring my screen-time report?
You may bring it if useful, but it is not required and does not diagnose the problem. Explain what the time includes and which activity concerns you. Work, access needs and meaningful communication should not automatically be combined with a harmful pattern into one clinical verdict.
Will the clinician need my passwords or messages?
No such information is requested by this preparation tool. Begin with broad observations rather than account access or private records. Any further information should have a clear clinical purpose and an appropriate privacy arrangement, not be collected as a routine proof of commitment.
What if I need the internet for disability-related access?
Explain those needs so that assessment and treatment preserve essential functions. A useful plan distinguishes necessary or supportive activity from the pattern causing difficulty. Removing access without considering its role is not an individualised clinical recommendation.
Can my family diagnose the problem from my device use?
They can describe concerns and seek support, but observations alone do not establish your diagnosis. Appropriate assessment should hear your experience and the wider context. Family involvement needs clear boundaries, and younger people require suitable age-specific professional arrangements.
Do I have to complete this before asking for help?
No. You can request a conversation with a brief account in your own words. The worksheet is optional and does not establish eligibility. Urgent health or safety concerns should be directed to appropriate services immediately rather than postponed until preparation is finished.
Resources and references
[1] WHO: gaming disorder as a specific clinical description
[2] 2024 validation study comparing specific internet-use screening measures
[3] Randomised clinical trial of internet and computer-game treatment