The association of Big Five personality traits and religiosity on Internet addiction among Israeli-Palestinian Muslim college students in Israel

Prior studies have demonstrated that personality traits and religiosity may be protective/risk factors for the development of Internet addiction; however, these associations have not been examined among the unique population of Israeli-Palestinian young adults. This study was the first to investigate the relationships between Internet addiction (Internet Addiction Test; IAT) with the Big Five personality traits (Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire; BFPTSQ) and religiosity (Positions Regarding Religion Questionnaire) among a sample of Israeli-Palestinian Muslim college students (n = 350). IAT scores were positively associated with BFPTSQ openness (r =.33, p <.01), BFPTSQ extraversion (r =.30, p <.01), and BFPTSQ agreeableness (r =.36, p <.01), whereas IAT scores were negatively related to religiosity (r = −.46, p <.01), BFPTSQ conscientiousness (r = −.33, p <.01), and BFPTSQ emotional stability (r = −.36, p <.01). The present work may provide insight into risk factors for developing Internet addiction in a manner that may increase early identification and intervention efforts.