Psychological intervention for three COVID patients who suffered online violence.

Three patients diagnosed with COVID-19 were all young women in their thirties who have suffered from Internet violence in their personal life after hospitalization. They showed significant emotional distress such as, depression state, acute stress disorder, and dissociative disorder. The current study adopts short-term, individualized and comprehensive psychological interventions, including psychological support, encouragement, listening, safety confirmation, catharsis, psychological suggestion, and stimulation of internal potential to treat patients. The third case was provided with psychological interventions combined with antipsychotic treatment. After timely psychological interventions all three patients achieved sound results.Copyright © 2021 Chinese Medical Journals Publishing House Co.Ltd.

Prevalence and Associated Factors of Internet Addiction Among Male Students of Jubail University College, Saudi Arabia

This study aims to determine the associated factors and prevalence of Internet addiction among Jubail University College – Male Branch students. Descriptive cross-sectional method was applied. 171 students participated. Self-administered survey questionnaire was the data-gathering instrument. Young's Internet Addiction Test was used to determine the level of internet usage. Factors associated with high internet consumption are accessibility, boredom, isolation, and extreme weather condition. Covid-19 pandemic changed the way respondents consume internet. It also changed the respondents' sleeping pattern and increases the average internet usage per day. Though the internet played a vital role during Covid-19 pandemic, it also increases the dependency of students on it. Higher number of moderate level internet addiction has been found among respondents. Therefore, it is encouraged that JUC should design a program to address the current situation.

Prevalence of Internet addiction and the effect of Internet usage on lifestyle of college students of Haryana during COVID 19 lockdown period

Introduction: Since 1990, Internet usage is increasing day by day and availability of smart mobile phones and electronic gazettes like tablet, laptop etc. has given it an exponential rise. During COVID-19 lockdown period, Internet usage pattern has changed a lot as per behaviour of students studying in schools, colleges, educational and coaching institutes etc. Background: To study the prevalence of Internet addiction and the effect of Internet usage on lifestyle of college students of Haryana. Method: Total 1035 students, of various educational streams in various colleges of Haryana state were included in the study and data was collected by pre-tested self-designed questionnaire and young's Internet addiction test questionnaire was used to assess its effect on life style. Results: Out of 1035 students, 436 (42%) participants were below average users of Internet, followed by 369 (36%) average users and 230 (22%) excessive users of Internet. Average of total score of young Internet addiction questionnaire was 27.72. Various life style factors like feeling stressed while working, neglects other activities, miss a diet, checks Internet many times, obsessed with phone and Internet usage per day were found significantly associated with Internet addiction (p < 0.05). Conclusion : Excessive Internet usage during COVID-19 pandemic may lead to various abnormal behavior changes which cause negative effect on various aspects of students like emotional, hyperactivity, depression, sleeping disorder etc.

Perception of Internet Use in Relation to Health Decision-Making among Nursing Students.

Internet use has increased worldwide during the COVID-19 pandemic, to the point where it has inadvertently integrated into our lives. University students use the Internet daily for different purposes: seeking information, entertaining, as a teaching and learning tool, they consider social networks as a means of connection and social interaction, and to seek information to make health decisions. Because of this, the Internet and social networks have gained popularity among this group, to the point of developing an abusive use that is not perceived as an addictive risk. A descriptive analysis was performed through the adaptation of a survey about Internet use, social networks and health perception; this survey was given to nursing students of the Gimbernat School during the academic year 2021-2022. Students completed the ad hoc questionnaire (N = 486; 83.5% female, 16.3% male; only 1 declared to be non-binary gender). Our hypothesis had to do with whether the population of nursing students at Gimbernat School had increased, after the pandemic, its use of the Internet and social networks to make decisions about health problems. The objective of the study was to analyse differences in students' habits of use of the Internet and social networks as they look for health information, their decision-making when they find the information and their perception of health as nursing students from a gender perspective. The results showed a clear positive relationship between the variables studied. Of nursing students, 60.4% spend between 20 and more than 40 h a week using the Internet, and 43.6% of these hours are spent on social networks. Of students, 31.1% make health decisions by searching for information on the Internet and consider it useful and relevant. The use of the Internet and social media in relation to health decisions is clearly affected. To try to reduce the incidence of the problem, interventions are needed regarding the prevention and/or consequences of Internet abuse and health education of student nurses as future health assets.

Association Between Internet Use, Sleep, Cognition and Physical Activity Levels During COVID-19 Lockdown.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare internet usage, sleep, cognition and physical activity in college professors and collegiate students during COVID-19 lockdown and to study the association of internet overuse with sleep quality, cognition and physical activity during the COVID-19 lockdown. Methods: A sample of 125 participants {professors (n = 52) and collegiate students (n = 73)} was recruited from Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, India. Criteria for inclusion were college professors and collegiate students who uses internet. Both the groups were assessed for internet usage (Internet Addiction Test), sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index), cognition (Cognitive Failure Questionnaire) and physical activity (Global Physical Activity Questionnaire) via google forms. Results: There was a significant difference for internet usage (p < 0.05), sleep quality (p = 0.032), cognition (distractibility, p = 0.019) and physical activity in college professors and collegiate students. It has been also reported that there was a significant association of internet usage with sleep quality and cognition and sleep quality with cognition. Conclusion: Students have more problematic internet usage, bad sleep quality, more cognitive failures and less physical activity than college professors during pandemic lockdown. It has been also observed that problematic internet usage has correlation with sleep quality, cognition and physical activity.

Risk Factors and Protective Factors of Internet Addiction in University Students during the Pandemic: Implications for Prevention and Treatment.

While the prevalence rates of Internet addiction (IA) amongst young people during the pandemic are disturbing, few studies have investigated the risk and protective factors of IA in Hong Kong university students under COVID-19. In this study, we examined the relationship between COVID-19-related stress and IA and the role of psychological morbidity and positive psychological attributes in the relationship. In summer 2022, 978 university students completed a survey assessing pandemic-related stress, psychological morbidity, and positive psychological attributes. While psychological morbidity was indexed by depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and suicidal behavior, positive psychological attributes included life satisfaction, flourishing, adversity beliefs, emotional competence, resilience, and family functioning measures. Results showed that stress and psychological morbidity positively predicted IA, and psychological morbidity mediated the association between stress and IA. Positive psychological attributes negatively predicted stress and IA, and mediated the connection between stress and IA. Positive psychological attributes moderated the mediating effect of psychological morbidity on the relationship between stress and IA. In addition to theoretical contributions, this study contributes to IA prevention and treatment: reducing psychological morbidity and promoting positive psychological attributes are promising strategies to address IA issues in young people.

Internet addiction and mental health disorders in high school students in a Peruvian region: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the association between internet addiction disorder (IAD) and anxiety and depressive symptomatology in high school students in two private schools in Chiclayo, Peru, during the COVID-19 pandemic. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Analytical cross-sectional investigation of 505 adolescents from two private schools. The dependent variables were anxiety and depressive symptomatology, measured with the Beck Adapted Depression Questionnaire (BDI-IIA) and the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), respectively. The main independent variable was IAD, measured with the Internet Addiction Test instrument(IATI). Prevalence ratios (PR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) were estimated. RESULTS: The average age was 14.16 years and 54.9% were women. 22.2% and 3.2% presented mild and moderate IAD; respectively. 9.3% presented severe anxiety and 34.3% severe depressive symptomatology. In the simple regression, adolescents with mild, moderate and severe IAD presented 19% (PR = 1.19; 95%CI: 1.05-1.35), 25% (PR = 1.25; 95%CI: 1.02-1.53) and 53% (PR = 1.47; 95% CI: 1.47-1.60) higher prevalence of depressive symptomatology; however, this association was not maintained in the multiple model. Anxiety increased 196% in adolescents with severe IAD (PR = 2.96; 95%CI: 1.86-4.71). CONCLUSION: We found that 2, 1, and 3 out of 10 students presented IAD, depressive symptomatology, and anxiety, respectively. We did not find an association between IAD and depressive symptomatology, but we did find an association with anxiety. Among the factors associated with the development of depressive symptomatology were the male sex, the presence of eating disorders, subclinical insomnia, using devices for more than 2 h, and using the Internet for academic activities. About anxiety, the associated factors are the female sex, the presence of eating disorders, subclinical insomnia, and the use of the Internet as social interaction. We recommend implementing counseling programs in view of the imminent introduction of the Internet as a pillar in education.

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic and its consequences on children's internet addiction and use of smartphone and tablet

BACKGROUND: Digital devices have represented a fundamental resource for maintaining communication relationships during the period of restrictive measures imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. However it is evident that this period has contributed to increase the risks connected to the inappropriate use of digital devices. The aim of our study is to demonstrate how the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent lockdown had an impact on children's use of digital devices. METHOD(S): One hundred and thirty children aged between six and 18 from Montalto di Castro were recruited in the study carried out in November 2020. All participants were asked to fill in two identical questionnaires: questions of the first questionnaire were related to the pre-lockdown period, while questions of the second questionnaire were related to the period between March and November 2020. RESULT(S): The average age of the 130 participants was 11.8+/-2 years. The amount of time spent by using digital devices is significantly lower in the pre-lockdown period than in the lockdown period (P<0.02). The smartphone addiction index is significantly lower in the pre-lockdown period (P<0.001). The analysis of headaches in the early morning hours - considered as one of the effects deriving from the use of the smartphone before sleeping - showed a statistically significant difference between the two groups (P<0.05). There are also significant differences related to physical activity and its frequency, with data showing the increase of children who did not perform physical activity (P<0.0001). CONCLUSION(S): This study does not only show a constant increase over time of the smartphone/tablet use, but also how the pandemic and social restrictions have worsened the phenomenon itself. This is particularly evident for the duration of exposure to screens, the addiction to smartphones, the quality of sleep and the practice of physical activity.Copyright © 2021 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA.

The association between online learning, parents' marital status, and internet addiction among adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic period: A cross-lagged panel network approach.

INTRODUCTION: Previous research has identified the association between online learning and Internet addiction (IA) and the role of family factors in it. However, few studies have treated IA as a multidimensional mechanism and explored the underlying linkage of online learning, IA, and parental marital status with a cross-lagged network approach. The study aimed to examine the relationship between online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, Internet addiction (IA), and parental marital status among Chinese adolescents. METHODS: The sample consisted of 2356 adolescents who completed the Internet Addiction Test twice over a four-month period. Four symptom networks and two cross-lagged panel networks were performed. RESULTS: The results showed that adolescents from divorced families had a higher prevalence of IA (27 %) compared to those from non-divorced families (17 %). The strongest cross-lagged association was found between "spending more time online" and "preferring the excitement online". In the divorced group, "school grades suffering" had the highest influence, while in the non-divorced group, "anticipation" had the highest influence. CONCLUSION: This study highlights the relationship between online learning, IA, and parental divorce and suggests that long-term online learning may contribute to IA, and parental divorce may exacerbate problematic Internet use and increase IA levels.

Determination of Internet and Digital Game Addiction Level of Students According to the Opinions of Parents, Teachers and Students

Due to the effect of COVID-19 pandemic, the use of technology and internet has taken place widely in all areas of life of individuals and provided positive benefits to individuals in various fields. Although the use of internet and technology provides many benefits, spending excessive time on internet due to the pandemic conditions has detrimental effects such as internet addiction that has been wide-spreading in human life. In this context, in this study, it has been tried to determine the digital game addiction levels of the students, which has become prevalent with the internet and internet addiction. 66 parents, 207 teachers, and 978 students participated in this study in which a mixed research method was used. The results acquired through the research demonstrate that the students are addicted to internet and digital games. The majority of the participant parents state that their children spend 3 hours or more on the internet a day with the purpose of playing games. Parents state that they have concerns whether their children are aware of the internet safety risks and they feel discomfort with the time their children spend on internet. Similarly, the majority of teachers participating in the research believe that students are addicted to digital games. Another result obtained from the research is that the majority of the participant students spend 3 hours or more a day, especially for playing digital games. However, contrary to their teachers and parents, students do not consider themselves as internet and game addicts.

Problematic social media use, digital gaming addiction and excessive screen time among Turkish adolescents during remote schooling: implications on mental and academic well-being

Objective: The present study aimed to describe screen use patterns among Turkish adolescents during the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic with a special emphasis on social media and digital gaming addiction, and explore how these are linked to adolescents' mental and academic well-being.Materials and Method: The study sample consisted of 9th to 12th grade students from three public high-schools in Istanbul, Turkey (n=201). Participants were required to complete a comprehensive questionnaire which gathered information about various domains including problematic screen use, attitudes towards online education, and mental/academic well-being during the lockdown period.Results: The overall screen time exhibited a significant increase during the lockdown, with the most common discretionary screen activities being social media use, communication, and watching movies/series (p<0.001). The students spent significantly less time on physical activities (p=0.003) and face-to-face meetings with their friends (p<0.001). Male students presented with higher scores on gaming addiction (p<0.001), whereas a significantly higher proportion of the female students (28.57% vs. 14.81%) were classified as atrisk for social media addiction (p=0.046). Both gaming addiction and social media addiction were associated with higher depression scores (p=0.003 and p<0.001 respectively).Conclusion: Screen use patterns may have diverse consequences for youth's well-being during the pandemic. The addiction risk and other detrimental outcomes are likely to be associated with the qualitative features of screen activities, rather than just the amount of time spent on digital media by the adolescents.

Investigation of Internet Addiction, Cyberbullying, and Cyber Victimization in Adolescents During the COVID-19 Pandemic and Their Relationship with Anxiety and Depression

Introduction: The present study examined the problems of internet addiction (IA) and cyberbullying in the use of digital technology, which has become the most important part of adolescents' lives during the pandemic period. These cyber problems are discussed in the context of their relationship with anxiety/depression. Methods: Adolescents (n=111, female 67%, male 33%) aged 11-18 years (mean: 13.7 +/- 2.05) were included in the study. Internet Addiction scale (IAS), Cyberbullying scale (CBS), Cyberbullying Sensibility scale (CBSS), Cyber Victimization scale (CVS), and Revised child anxiety/depression scale-child version (RCADS-CV) scales were used. The scales were filled out online twice according to the participants' situations before and during the pandemic. Results: The IAS, CBS, and CBSS scores were significantly higher during the pandemic period (respectively: z=-7,227, p<0.001, z=-2,623, p=0.009, z=-2,382, p=0.017). There was no significant difference in the CVS scores (p=0.326). The IAS, CVS, and CBSS scores were associated with RCADS-CV scores. The CBS scores showed a correlation with panic and social anxiety scores. Conclusion: The findings indicate that the pandemic has negatively affected the behaviors of adolescents in cyberspace in terms of IAS and CBS. Moreover, anxiety and depression symptoms were associated with risky cyber behaviors such as addiction and bullying in cyberspace. Considering that adolescents are among the most important actors in the cyber world, they should be supervised and psychosocially supported in terms of increased cyber risks and anxiety and depression in a global stress period such as a pandemic.

Role of innate and acquired resilience in behavioral system, mental health, and internet addiction among Japanese adolescents in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: This study examines mediation models in which behavioral inhibition and activation systems (BIS/BAS) impact internet addiction through mental health and the moderating roles of innate and acquired resilience in the models. Methods: The data set used in this study was a cross-sectional survey among 952 adolescents in July 2021. Internet Addiction Test, Fear of COVID-19 Scale, BIS/BAS scales, and Depression Self-Rating Scale were used for analysis. After controlling for gender, the mediation and moderated mediation models were examined. Results: The results revealed that depressive symptoms partially mediated the relationship between BIS and internet addiction and between BAS-fun-seeking (BAS-FS) and internet addiction. Innate and acquired resilience moderated the relationship between depressive symptoms and internet addiction. The indirect effect of innate and acquired resilience on internet addiction via depressive symptoms was statistically significant in both low and high innate and acquired resilience. The results of conditional indirect effect analysis indicated that the depressive symptoms-internet addiction association decreased with the increase of innate or acquired resilience level. Discussion: Our results suggested that depression symptoms played a significant mediation role in the relationships between BIS/BAS and internet addiction, and higher innate and acquired resilience was associated with a reduced risk of internet addiction. BIS/BAS may be a risk for internet dependence via mental health, and innate and acquired resilience appears to serve as a protective factor.

Symptom relationships between internet addiction and anxiety across primary and middle school students during the Omicron lockdown.

During the Omicron pandemic, students in Shenzhen took classes at home via the internet, which could lead to internet addiction (IA) symptoms, and anxiety is often considered an important risk factor for IA. There are several different developmental stages within adolescence. However, no studies have explored the interaction between IA and anxiety at the symptom level using a longitudinal design stratified by age. A total of 2744 students completed the questionnaire 50 days after starting the online classes (T1) and 50 days after they returned to school (T2). A cross-lagged panel network model was used to describe the structure of the comorbidity network. With the help of bootstrapping, the Mann-Whitney U test was used to examine the differences between primary school students' and middle school students' networks. The results found that there is a bidirectional interaction between IA and anxiety, and anxiety plays a dominant role. Feeling afraid is the bridge symptom between IA and anxiety. IA did not show developmental stage differences, but anxiety did. These findings extend the model of compensatory internet use and suggest that, when alleviating IA symptoms in adolescents, attention should be given to their possible comorbid anxiety symptoms, especially in middle school students.

From Exhibitionism to Addiction, or Cyber Threats Among Children and Adolescents

The purpose of the article is to reflect on cyber threats among children and adolescents, the main cause of which is usually behavior, based on the emotions and needs of young people. Another purpose of the paper is to try to identify and describe mainly the phenomenon of exhibitionism occurring in cyberspace. The problem raised in the article also indicates the need for cooperation of institutions responsible for the safety of young people in cyberspace. An important point of reference, is the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced people to intensify their interaction with each other in the virtual world. Using a comparative perspective, based on data from before the lock down as well as after it was lifted, a characterization will be made of the scale of digital threats occurring among young people. This, in turn, will make it possible to answer the question: whether a real threat such as a pandemic can have an impact on the growth of digital threats. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2023.

Inferiority feelings and internet addiction among Turkish University students in the context of COVID-19: The mediating role of emotion dysregulation.

Emotion dysregulation is a major predictor of increased internet addiction. However, the psychological experiences linked to increased internet addiction through higher emotion dysregulation are poorly understood. The aim of this study was to investigate if inferiority feelings, an Adlerian construct theorized to be rooted in childhood, are associated with increased Internet addiction through emotion dysregulation. Another objective of the study was to determine if the internet use characteristics of young adults changed during the pandemic. A conceptual model was validated statistically using the PROCESS macro with a survey method involving 443 university students living in different regions of Turkey. The results support the significance of all three effects of inferiority feelings on internet addiction, namely the total (B = 0.30, CI = [0.24, 0.35]), the direct (B = 0.22, BootCI = [0.15, 0.29]), and the indirect (B = 0.08, BootCI = [0.04, 0.12]). In other words, inferiority feelings are associated with a greater level of internet addiction both directly and indirectly through greater emotion dysregulation. Moreover, the overall prevalence of Internet addiction was 45.8% among the participants and that of severe Internet addiction was 22.1%. Almost 90% of the participants reported an increase in their recreational Internet use during the pandemic, with an average daily increase of 2.58 h (SD = 1.49), the significance of which was supported by the t-test results. The results provide important insights for parents, practitioners, and researchers on addressing the internet addiction problem among young adults living in Turkey or other countries that are similar to Turkey.

Problematic video-streaming: a short review

Video-streaming typically describes watching live or prerecorded videos online. This behavior has significantly increased over the past two years in tandem with the global COVID-19 pandemic. The literature describing this behavior is still in its infancy, therefore, it is not well-characterized and our understanding is thereby limited. Different forms of problematic video-streaming have varying prevalence rates in the literature and each requires further operationalization. Overall, the various presentations of problematic video-streaming have been found to be associated with poor mental and physical health and linked to increased impulsivity, reduced academic and work performance, and lower quality of life. This article explores the current literature surrounding the definition, prevalence, validated assessments, associated factors, motivations, and available treatments for problematic video-streaming. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Correlates of excessive internet use in a representative sample of the czech adult population.

Objectives: the aim of the study was description of the association between the number of hours spent on the internet and symptomatology of Internet addiction, corrected by sociodemographic data, mental instability, alcohol and cannabis use, gambling, and subjective estimation of physical and mental health using responses from a representative sample of Czech respondents during COVID-19 pandemic. Sample and setting: The group consisted of 2 602 people (1 206 men, 1 396 women), average age 44,61 years, SD = 15,8223, range 15-85 years randomly selected by quota selection based on age, gender, education and region. Data were processed by hierarchical multivariate linear regression analysis (OLS). The dependent variable was data from the Excessive Internet Use test. Independent variables were age, gender, net income, marital status, education, subjective estimation of mental and physical health, data from MHI-5, CAGE, cast and PGsi tools. Result(s): the results are in line with previous research, which indicates that the development of internet addiction is mainly due to time spent on the Internet, the risk is inversely related to age and slightly higher in men. The influence of other variables measuring substance use, gambling and mental health supports hypotheses about common etiology of various types of addiction and their association with mental health. Study limitation: the study is based on self-referential data, has a heuristic, empirical character and does not rely on a pre-formulated theory.Copyright © 2022 TIGIS Spol. s.r.o.. All rights reserved.

Addiction to medical websites post COVID-19 pandemic: a predictor of illness anxiety disorder among Arabian youth

BackgroundThe coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly impacted every region of the world. During these unprecedented times, college students have been experiencing severe mental health issues concerning excessive internet usage. On average, 42.9% of students in Egypt utilized the internet (Anwar et al. in J Public Health 30:1753–1762, 2022). Arabs quickly diagnose themselves online using medical websites. The issue is exacerbated by drugs bought without a prescription (Alghadeer et al. in Saudi Pharm J 26:719–724, 2018).MethodsThis study examined he relationship between addiction to medical websites and behaviors related to Illness Anxiety Disorder among a population of Arabic university students. A sample consisting of N = 368 youths was examined.ResultsBivariate linear regression, Z score, R2, t-test, ANOVA, mean, and standard deviation were used for statistical analysis. The findings of the study revealed a linear equation that predicts illness anxiety in adolescents. The correlation between medical website addiction and hypochondria was found to be 0.69. Furthermore, male participants were more addicted to medical websites than female participants.ConclusionsFindings supported the notion that addiction to medical websites significantly predicts hypochondria.

Exploring psychological correlates of problematic internet use

Internet use has become an essential part of our daily lives;however, its widespread use has also called attention to potential negative consequences around the world. Research on problematic internet use has been hindered by a lack of clear definition and diagnosis. This study aimed to examine the relationships between the level of problematic internet use and psychological variables in order to determine common psychological correlates among those who are considered to exhibit problematic internet use. In this study, a diverse sample of 127 American adults completed measures of problematic internet use, depression, anxiety, personality dimensions, and substance use. Descriptive, correlational, and regression analyses were used to identify these relationships. Results indicated that as predicted, there were significant positive correlations between depression, anxiety, and substance use with problematic internet use. However, no significant relationship was found between extraversion and problematic internet use. Overall, male participants in the sample exhibited higher levels of problematic internet use. COVID-19 also appears to have had an effect on the sample, as 85.8% indicated an increase in internet use due to the pandemic. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)