Internet Addiction in Young Adults

Abstract

Introduction: The internet addiction phenomenon reads as characteristics the constant use and the addicted behavior from the internet itself, which affects negative the normal life of the user. This phenomenon induced in a combination of biological, psychosocial and personal traits results. Objectives: The purpose in this study is the investigation about the level of addiction, in a sample taken from the students of the Nursing Department, located at the TEI of Athens. Material and Method: The sample consists 650 students of the Nursing Department from the TEI of Athens between the ages 19–22+. For the collection of the sample was used questionnaires taken and adapted from IAT(Internet Addiction Test).For the statistical analysis of the data was used the programs SPSS-20 and the trials x2 test, t-test and anova. The statistical significance took at level of p<0.05. Results: The 96.3% of the sample has personal computer and the 72% has a personal computer in his bedroom. The 45.7% of the sample plays online games and the 95.4% uses Social Networking Services. Also the 53.8% of the sample mentioned that consumes more hours in the internet than in his studies. The 92.8% of the sample is the average on-line user, but sometimes spends more time than the normal, although he has control of the usage, the 7.2% frequently experiencing problems because of the internet, in the other hand we did not find samples that the internet usage caused them significant problems in their lives. Higher level of addiction in the internet occurs on male subjects, rather than female subjects, in a statistical significant difference of p<0.001. Also the subjects that mention that someone in their family environment does excessive use of the internet or that is addicted to the internet, they spend more time or use more the internet, they presenting higher level of addiction in a statistical significance of p<0.001. Although the subjects with a personal computer in their own bedroom, they are more addicted, p<0.001, as well as the subjects that they play on-line games, p<0.001. Was found that the more years the subject uses the internet the more addicted becomes in that, p<0.001. Conclusion: The results of this study showed that the reasons that lead a person to this state of pathological connection with the internet are plenty. Appears, to associating with various elements and characteristics, as sex, nationality, occupation of parents, the quality and the quantity of time spending on the internet appears to create a pathological condition.