Scope of Study: This study investigates the potential for a diagnosis of Internet Addiction and it’s associated subtypes as a conditional diagnosis in future revisions of the DSM-5. This research collects, compiles, and analyzes the existing literature on Internet Addiction and each of its subtypes, as well as the multiple interrelated topics regarding the broad topic of addiction, the generalized topic of behavioral addictions, as well as specific representative behavioral addictions. This comprehensive analysis facilitates a deductive examination of the potential validity of Internet Addiction as a mental health disorder. This study also investigates the decision by the American Psychiatric Association (APA) to fundamentally alter the formally proposed diagnosis of Internet Addiction and insert instead Internet Gaming Disorder as a conditional diagnosis in the first edition of the DSM-5.

Findings and Conclusions: Over 1,000 peer-reviewed academic articles and books were found on the various topics investigated, nearly 500 of which were cited in the present study. The findings of this study indicate sufficient research for the APA to accept the broader diagnosis of Internet Addiction with subtypes into a revised DSM-5. The study closes with three possible speculative conclusions as to why the APA made the decision to deny the Internet Addition diagnosis in favor of its own Internet Gaming Disorder diagnosis in the current DSM-5.