Against the backdrop of digital technology deeply permeating into the daily lives of adolescents, the issue of internet addiction among Chinese adolescents has evolved from individual behavioral abnormalities into a public health challenge that affects social stability. The continuous growth of school dropouts, family conflicts, and extreme incidents triggered by internet addiction has compelled academia and policymakers to construct a scientific and effective prevention and control system through the paradigm transformation of diagnostic criteria. By systematically reviewing the " three-stage evolution" path of diagnostic criteria for internet addiction among Chinese adolescents, from " behavioral description" to " functional assessment" and then to " clinical operation" , this study not only reveals the inherent laws underlying the transition from empirical exploration to scientific construction of these criteria, but also provides historical lessons for addressing core challenges such as technological adaptability and cultural compatibility in current diagnostic practices for internet addiction among Chinese adolescents. Ultimately, it lays a solid theoretical and practical foundation for building a " dynamic, precise, and culturally adapted" diagnostic criteria system.