Abstract: Objective To investigate the latent profiles of internet addiction among vocational college students and identify its influencing factors, thereby providing a basis for the development of differentiated intervention strategies. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted between June and October 2024, utilizing convenience sampling to recruit students from three vocational colleges in Sichuan Province. Data were collected through a general demographic questionnaire, the Internet Addiction Scale, the Psychological Quality of Life Assessment Questionnaire, and the General Self-Efficacy Scale. Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) was employed to identify distinct profiles of internet addiction, and multinomial logistic regression was used to examine the associated factors. Results A total of 1 037 valid questionnaires were analyzed. Three distinct profiles of internet addiction were identified: a "No Internet Addiction" group (42.1%), a "Moderate Internet Use" group (40.2%), and a "High-Risk Internet Addiction" group (17.7%). Multinomial logistic regression analysis indicated that psychological quality of life, general self-efficacy, frequency of physical exercise, communication with parents, and whether the student held a position as a class cadre were significant factors influencing the latent profile membership. Specifically, students with higher scores in psychological quality of life (Moderate Internet Use vs. No Internet Addiction: OR=0.971; High-Risk Internet Addiction vs. No Internet Addiction: OR=0.930), higher general self-efficacy (OR=0.133), and highter physical exercise frequency (OR=0.476) were more likely to be classified in the "No Internet Addiction" group. Conversely, students who communicated less frequently with their parents (OR=1.887), had lower psychological quality of life (OR=1.044), lower general self-efficacy (OR=1.860), and hold a class cadre position (OR=0.556) were more likely to belong to the "High-Risk Internet Addiction" group (all P<0.05). Conclusion Internet addiction among vocational college students manifests in three distinct latent profiles. It is imperative for administrators to formulate and implement targeted intervention strategies based on the specific characteristics of these different groups to effectively prevent and mitigate problematic internet use.

Key words: Vocational college students, Internet addiction, Psychological quality of life, Latent profile analysis, Influencing factors