Internet addiction, usage, gratification, and pleasure experience: the Taiwan college students’ case

Abstract

This study explores Internet addiction among some of the Taiwan’s college students. Also covered are a discussion of the Internet as a form of addiction, and related literature on this issue. This study used the Uses and Gratifications theory and the Play theory in mass communication. Nine hundred and ten valid surveys were collected from 12 universities and colleges around Taiwan. The results indicated that Internet addiction does exist among some of Taiwan’s college students. In particular, 54 students were identified as Internet addicts. It was found that Internet addicts spent almost triple the number of hours connected to the Internet as compare to non-addicts, and spent significantly more time on BBSs, the WWW, e-mail and games than non-addicts. The addict group found the Internet entertaining, interesting, interactive, and satisfactory. The addict group rated Internet impacts on their studies and daily life routines significantly more negatively than the non-addict group. The study also found that the most powerful predictor of Internet addiction is the communication pleasure score, followed by BBS use hours, sex, satisfaction score, and e-mail-use hours.

Introduction

Use of the Internet on Taiwan’s college campuses and in society has increased dramatically in recent years. While the academic use of Internet is primarily intended for faculty research and communication, the Internet has also become an important part of student life. However, over-involvement with the Internet has occasionally been observed on campus. For example, Chou, Chou and Tyan (1999) reported this observation: in one dorm at their science- and technology-oriented university, four roommates were busy, quietly working on their PCs. They logged on to the Internet to chat with other people, their roommates! Another observation the researchers made was that some college students flunked because they spent too much time on the Internet rather than on their studies. Some students remain connected to the Internet virtually the whole day — as long as they are awake. One researcher’s student reported that she could not do anything else, and felt serious depression and irritability when her network connection was out. These observations attracted researchers’ attention and led us to ask how the Internet hook them so tenaciously, leading them to produce such addiction-like behaviors? Who is actually addicted to the Internet, and why are they addicted?

Although development of Internet addiction concept is still in its infancy and academic investigations are few in number, some anecdotal data and empirical studies have accumulated in recent years. Griffiths (1998) considered Internet addiction to be a kind of technological addiction (such as computer addiction), and one in a subset of behavioral addiction (such as compulsive gambling). Brenner (1996) argued that because the Internet provides user-friendly interfaces, and a convenient medium for checking information and communicating with others, a wide range of users have become cybernetically involved with the Internet, and this has certainly changed the profile of the “computer addict.” Kandell (1998) defined Internet addiction as “a psychological dependence on the Internet, regardless of the type of activity once logged on” (p. 12). He stated that college students as a group appear more vulnerable in developing a dependence on the Internet than any other segment of society, because college students have a strong drive to develop a firm sense of identity, to develop meaningful and intimate relationships, usually have free and easily accessible connections, and their Internet use is implicitly if not explicitly encouraged.

All these observations can also be applied to Taiwan’s college students. In Taiwan, the first network infrastructure is called TANET, which connects all schools and major research institutes. TANET still provides convenient and free access to faculties and most students. In Taiwanese society, many students separate from their families and move toward an independent life when they enter college. Most of them live in school dormitories, and have fast and free Internet access via school network systems. More than half of them had not used the Internet before entering college, neither did their parents. However, upon their graduating from college, each one of them is well experienced with the Internet. The Internet becomes an important part of college students’ lives, not only for their studies and daily routines, but also as a tool for getting to know other people and the rest of the world.

Most people use the Internet in healthy and productive ways. However, some college students develop a “pathologic” use of the Internet. Kandell (1998) gave an analogy that exercise is good and people require it, but over-exercise may have a destructively negative impact on human health. Internet use is similar. Over-involvement with the Internet, or “pathologic Internet use” (PIU) may cause users time-management or health problems, and create conflicts with other daily activities or with people around the users. The Internet may be essentially good, but as in other areas of life, too much of a good thing can lead to trouble.