Title

Internet Use And Misuse: Preliminary Findings From A New Assessment Instrument

Keywords

Boredom proneness; Internet-related impairment; Online assessment; Technology and behavior

Abstract

The Internet is an affordable and easily accessible technology that has many potential applications to psychology. Interactive technologies engage users psychologically and may facilitate adaptive and maladaptive behaviors. This research explored the Internet-use patterns, psychological characteristics, and negative consequences associated with online activities of 393 college students using the Internet Use Survey (IUS), a self-report instrument designed to administer online. Results indicated that participants spent an average of 3.3 total hours per day on the Internet during the past 12 months and used the medium for multiple purposes. Although participants reported the occurrence of some potentially negative consequences related to Internet use, the prevalence rates for most problematic behaviors were generally low. Exploratory principal component analysis of the IUS subscale that attempts to measure Internet-related impairment revealed four factors: absorption, negative consequences, disrupted sleep, and deception. All of these factors were then significantly related to a measure of boredom proneness. This research supports the necessity for multidimensional assessment (e.g., frequency and context) of Internet usage to enhance our understanding of how this new technology interfaces with users psychologically and behaviorally. © 2003 Sage Publications.

Publication Date

9-1-2003

Publication Title

Behavior Modification

Volume

27

Issue

4

Number of Pages

484-504

Document Type

Article

Personal Identifier

scopus

DOI Link

https://doi.org/10.1177/0145445503255600

Socpus ID

16844366814 (Scopus)

Source API URL

https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/16844366814

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS