A third of youths are exposed to "excessive Internet use", a new study has found.

The quantitative study was conducted by the National Centre for Freedom from Addiction within the President's Foundation for the Wellbeing of Society.

Anna Vella, the chairperson of the National Centre, said that the study found that a third of Maltese aged 18-30 were exposed to too much Internet.

Dr Vella said Internet overuse could lead to significant behavioral and psychological issues linked to distress and loss of freedom. The study was based on the internationally recognised Internet Addiction Test, which uses 20 different indicators to measure mild, moderate and severe  Internet use.

Problematic Internet use is described as an addictive behaviour— excessive or poorly controlled preoccupations, urges, or behaviours regarding computer use and internet access that lead to impairment.

The study, conducted among more than 1,500 young people, found that the majority, 65 per cent were average users.

The most popular online activity among the entire sample was social networking with more than four out of every five respondents listing this as their main use for the Internet.

Unemployed respondents were on average at the lower end of excessive use and male users had a higher prevalence of problematic use.

Those aged 18-21 were also among the most likely to be exposed to excessive use as were single users compared to those in a relationship.

Dr Vella explained that the southern harbour area had the highest prevalence of problematic use, with Gozitans least exposed to problematic use.

The situation in Malta reflects that internationally.