Internet use among so called “digital natives” [1,2] is linked to all areas of life [3-7]. For example, every German household containing young people aged between 12 and 19 years is equipped with a computer or laptop [5]. In addition, personal computers are no longer the most common way of accessing the Internet in Europe. There has been unequivocal growth in access to the Internet via handheld or portable devices (eg, touchpads and smartphones), showing that the Internet is now accessible to everyone [3,5]. Therefore, we can assume the existence of a generation that has grown up with the latest technologies from a very young age [1,2] and that Internet use is an extremely widespread phenomenon. This situation can be clearly explained by the fact that the Internet is a convenient source of information, social contacts, education, shopping, and recreational activities [6-10] that simplifies everyday life.

The Internet also has a negative side. The inclusion of Internet Gaming Disorder in Section III of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Fifth Edition) (DSM-5) [11] illustrates the relevance of Internet addiction. Furthermore, different studies in several countries show that for 1.2% to 15.1% of cases, the intensive Internet use of adolescents can be classified as problematic [12-17]. Initial results from longitudinal studies even give rise to the suspicion that the disorder is highly stable [18].

To provide a basis for early intervention and preventive measures, we need to understand how the frequent Internet use of approximately 8% of adolescents becomes a problematic or dysfunctional behavior. Regarding the relationship between the Internet and all areas of life [5-7] and the suggested DSM-5 criteria for Internet addiction [11], the duration someone spends online does not appear to be a valid criterion. Thus, getting to know the motives behind adolescent Internet consumption is important.

Concerning motives for media use in general, McQuail [19,20] assumes 4 basic motives: information, personal identity, integration and social identity, and entertainment, the latter covering relaxation, emotional relief, recreation, and more. Recent research regarding the motivations of Internet use in particular found the existence of instrumental motives, such as information seeking and social interaction, as well as a relationship between personality types and Internet use [6,21-28]. For example, Amiel and Sargent developed the Internet Motives Questionnaire [21], which measures the 4 instrumental motive groups interpersonal/communication utility, entertainment utility, information utility, and convenience.

There are, however, a number of gaps in current research. First, not much is known about affectivity, which plays an important role in understanding problematic Internet use. In fact, there are instruments for measuring Internet addiction and instrumental motives for using the Internet. In 1998, for example, Young [29] developed the first instrument for measuring Internet addiction, the Internet Addiction Test (IAT), which was translated into various languages and validated in different samples [30-33]. Also, the previously mentioned Internet Motives Questionnaire assesses motives that are more instrumental as they target the affective function the Internet serves for adolescents.

According to the motivation model of McClelland [34], affective change is assumed to be the driving force behind human behavior. Hence, striving for positive affect and escaping or relieving a dysphoric mood is seen as the basis of motivational (Internet) behavior and thus, according to the DSM-5, a criterion for Internet use disorder [11].

Second, none of the studies were based on a theoretical framework defining the dimensionality of motives for Internet use a priori. One exception is the Motives for Online Gaming Questionnaire (MOGQ) [35]. The MOGQ is based on a theoretical approach, although this model was developed by observing online players. Thus, the questionnaire is specific to Internet gaming and, therefore, not applicable to Internet use motives in general.

One promising approach that includes affectivity and allows the classification of the motivation behind human behavior was proposed by Cox and Klinger [36,37]. The Motivational Model of Alcohol Use assumes that people display a certain behavior to achieve expected or desired effects [38-42]. Motives can be classified by means of the valence and the source of the expected affective change. The valence is either positive (ie, to increase positive feelings) or negative (ie, to decrease negative feelings); the source can be internal (eg, in respect to one’s own bodily sensations) or external (eg, in respect to significant others). Crossing these 2 dimensions results in the 4 motive categories enhancement, coping, conformity, and social as shown in Table 1 [40-44].

Based on this 4-dimensional model, Cooper [38] developed the Drinking Motive Questionnaire (DMQ-R; German, French, and Italian version by Kuntsche et al [39]), which comprises 5 items per dimension. Although originally developed to understand alcohol use, the DMQ-R with its 4 motivational factors has already been successfully adapted to several behaviors beyond alcohol use (eg, gambling [41], sexual risk-taking behavior [42], and listening to music [43]). Given the success of previous adaptation attempts, the fact that McQuail’s [19,20] basic motives for using media in general are reflected in the 4-dimensional model of Cooper [38] and the current state of research that assumes social interactions and conformity as motives for Internet consumption (as described previously), it is likely that Cox and Klinger’s motivational model can be applied to Internet use.

Consequently, based on the DMQ-R and the motivational model by Cox and Klinger [36,37], the aim of this study is to develop the Internet Motive Questionnaire for Adolescents (IMQ-A) (see Multimedia Appendices 1 and 2) as a theory-driven conceptualization and to validate it in a sample of German adolescents in a Web-based data collection conducted in the summer of 2011. More specifically, the following hypotheses are tested: (1) The IMQ-A 4-factor model has an adequate fit, (2) every subscale of the IMQ-A (coping, enhancement, social, and conformity motives) has at least satisfactory internal consistency, (3) based on evidence from studies on alcohol use [38,39] and gambling [41], we expect enhancement and coping to be associated with high-score Internet use, but not social or conformity motives, and (4) problematic and nonproblematic Internet users differ with regards to their motives for going online.

To provide a basis for early intervention and preventive measures, understanding the motives that drive intensive Internet use to become dysfunctional among adolescents is important. Therefore, the aim of this study was to develop the IMQ-A as a theory-based measurement for identifying the underlying motives for high-risk Internet use.

Because every adolescent uses the Internet daily [3,5-7] and using the Internet is now regarded as the fourth cultural competence, the widespread nature of the Internet is undisputed. Because of this, distinguishing between intensive and dysfunctional adolescent Internet use becomes difficult. Studies regarding 3 other problematic behaviors of adolescents show that motives are a predictor for addictive behavior. Furthermore, motives are comparable across different cultures [41-43,58], which could be explained by the link between motives and personality [22,24-27,58]. As a consequence, developing the IMQ-A based on a questionnaire that had already been developed and validated for different behaviors and cultures not only allows the underlying motives for high-risk Internet use to be identified, but it also offers starting points for developing preventive measures or early intervention programs as well as the chance to compare motivations for different behaviors across different cultures.

Testing the construct validity, the results of the CFA revealed an acceptable, but not outstanding, fit of the motives for Internet use from the 4-factor model. Two factors may be responsible for the comparatively low model fit. First, we used a rather small sample, which turned out to be quite heterogeneous because of the various different recruitment methods. Secondly, IMQ-A items were developed based on an instrument constructed to measure drinking motives. Despite considerable similarities between Internet motives and drinking motives, the item “because your friends pressured you to do it,” for instance, seems to be worded too actively and too strongly for the Internet context, which is reflected by a weak or nonsignificant item loading. Nevertheless, all the other items showed significant loadings on the expected scales. Moreover, at least satisfactory internal consistencies were obtained for all dimensions [53].

The results of the regression analyses support the concurrent validity of the IMQ-A. In accordance with the literature concerning drinking motives [59,60] and gambling motives [41], enhancement and coping predicted the 2 criteria of dysfunctional Internet use (prediction of high-risk users and higher OSV_K-S score). The consistency of results across the 2 indicators highlights the robustness of the findings and indicates that accessing the Internet frequently for internal emotion-regulation motives is more dysfunctional than social Internet use, which appears more recreational. Our findings showed that persons characterized as low-risk users seem to use the Internet mainly to meet social needs and maintain contacts. Consequently, it can be supposed that the Internet (as is the case with alcohol consumption or gambling) is also used as a method for regulating emotions, and when this motivation comes into play, Internet consumption may exceed the useful aspects.

Concluding from the results of the CFA and the regression analyses, construct and concurrent validity can be regarded as given. Therefore, it can be assumed that motives of adolescent Internet consumption can be measured using the developed questionnaire. By implication, the respondents’ answers reveal that they use the Internet both for information research and reasons of social identity and integrity as well as for entertainment as defined by McQuail [19,20].

The results regarding the motive ranking suggest that adolescents access the Internet primarily for positive motives (enhancement and social), whereas negative motives (coping and confirmatory) seem to have a minor impact. Interestingly, these results are consistent with the drinking motives literature [38,40,60,61]. Further analogies to the field of drinking motives can be drawn [40] based on the results of group-specific analysis. Thus, high-risk users mainly accessed the Internet for internal motives, whereas low-risk users indicated both internal and external motives, but were primarily motivated socially.

Although the presented results demonstrate the psychometric qualities of the IMQ-A to assess adolescent motives for accessing the Internet, it is likely that there are other motives for accessing the Internet besides affective change, such as gaming or knowledge acquisition [3-5,22-25]. Another limitation is the small sample size and the fact that the current sample is not representative of all Internet users in this age group. For example, compared with other studies [12-17], the prevalence of dysfunctional Internet users (46.5%) indicates an overrepresentation of problematic users. One explanation could be the Web-based data collection method as well as the fact that 2 OSV_K-S categories were rolled into 1 (problematic and addicted to high risk).

Consequently, we recommend further validation of the IMQ-A with larger sample sizes, possibly including other cultures or parts of Germany. Moreover, in the presented survey, the IMQ-A was applied to a nonclinical sample. For this reason, it remains unclear to what extent the questionnaire can be used in a clinical sample. Future longitudinal studies are recommended to further examine the predictive validity. In this way, tests could be conducted to see whether the IMQ-A predicts future Internet use behavior among adolescents.

Despite the described limitations, the IMQ-A appears to be a valid and reliable instrument to assess motives related to adolescent Internet use. This questionnaire could serve as a basis on which to develop preventive measures or early intervention programs dealing especially with internal motives of Internet consumption.

In the clinical field, the IMQ-A can help to identify the motives of dysfunctional Internet consumption and establish individual intervention aspects for developing alternative coping strategies for coping users, for example.