This study aims to identify the effect of Internet environment variables on addiction to the Internet and mental health and present theoretical and political suggestions by analysing the control effect of personal factor, family factors and school fac...
This study aims to identify the effect of Internet environment variables on addiction to the Internet and mental health and present theoretical and political suggestions by analysing the control effect of personal factor, family factors and school factors. To achieve the purposes of the study, we identified factors of adolescents's addiction to the Internet in a view of ecological system based on bibliographical data and developed a cause and effect model.
The study interviewed 539 boys and girls who were attending to high schools in Gwangju and Jeonnam using a questionnaire developed for statistical analysis.
For an analysis of the data collected, we conducted a test of measuring tools, and an analysis of differences between features and correlations between variables using SPSS 14.0. With a use of AMOS 6.0, we tested the cause and effect model and assumptions of the study.
The following results are obtained through data analyses:
When the addiction to the Internet of the 539 adolescents was analysed, 158 (29.4%) had suspected addiction to the Internet and 6 subjects (1.2%) who had above 80 had severe addiction. 164 of the entire subjects (30.6%) who are attending to general high schools had above 50 points, which indicates that a focus should be given on the level of addiction.
The subjects who were attending to technical high schools showed higher points of addiction and boy students had significantly higher points of addiction than girl students.
First, it was found that the Internet expectation, approach and anonymity that are included in Internet environment had a significant effect on the addiction.
Internet expectation, that is, the more expectation to the Internet experiences they had, they showed more addiction. The more anonymity, the higher rate of addiction was found. Through experiences to become someone else based on anonymity, they had higher sense of control and superiority, which led to more addiction. In respect to approach to the Internet services, the more harmful their regional and school environment were, the higher rate of addiction was found.
Second, gender as personal factor, communication between parents and children as family factor, and teachers' support and academic achievements as school factors had a significant effect on the relations between Internet expectation and addiction.
Third, it was found that gender, communication between parents and children, parents' nursing attitude and friends' support had a control effect on the relations between Internet approach and addiction.
Fourth, gender, stress, self-efficacy, communication between parents and children, parents' nursing attitude, and academic achievements had a control effect on the relations between anonymity and addiction.
Fifth, gender, stress, communication between parents and children, teachers' will, and academic achievements had a control effect on the relations between addiction and anxiety.
Sixth, on the relations between addiction and obsessive-compulsive disorder, gender, stress, communication between parents and children, parents' nursing attitude, teachers' and friends' support, and academic achievements had a control effect.
This study has a significant meaning in that it identified interactions between addiction to the Internet and relevant factors and even mental health as a result of the addiction unlike previous studies trying to examine the addiction only based on the relations between a few independent and subordinate variables.
In conclusion, this study suggests that addiction to the Internet and mental health can be effectively managed and prevented if adolescents have care from parents, and positive relations with teachers and friends at schools though they are exposed to various stresses and Internet environment.
Key words : internet addiction, internet environment, adolescents, expectation, approach, anonymity, ecological system, control effect, personal factor, family factor, school factor, mental health