The Relationship Between Autistic Traits, Internet Addiction, Perceived Social Support and Life Satisfaction

We aimed to examine the relationship between autistic traits, internet addiction and multidimensional perceived social support in individuals aged over 18 years in a non-clinical population sample.

Volunteers were invited to the study via social media and e-mail, and the data were collected using an online questionnaire form. The research sample consists of 355 participants. The socio-demographic and internet usage information of the participants were collected via the Personal Information Form. Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ), Young-Internet Addiction Test (Y-IAT), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), and The Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) which were administered to the participants.

As the AQ scores increased, the scores of the Y-IAT also increased, and MSPSS and SWLS scores decreased. According to our results, autistic traits (ATs) were associated with internet addiction, perceived social support and life satisfaction. A positive and significant relationship was found between internet addiction and the sub-dimensions of the autism spectrum questionnaire, such as social skills, shifting attention, attention to detail and communication scores. We stated that 10% of the total variance regarding internet addiction, 8% of the total variance regarding social support and 2% of the total variance regarding life satisfaction are explained by autistic traits. Also, as the level of internet addiction increases, the perceived social support and life satisfaction levels decrease.

Individuals with more ATs are more prone to internet addiction. ATs negatively predicted the perceived social support and life satisfaction. Preventive and therapeutic algorithms need to be developed for individuals with autistic traits.