Risk Behaviors among Youths in a Two-Aspect Approach: Using Psychoactive Substances and Problematic Using of Internet

Abstract

Risky behaviors, both online and offline, draw the attention of people who are engaged in education, namely parents, teachers, law enforcement representatives. This text joins the efforts to explain the relations between the Problematic Internet Use and offline risky behaviors. The main objective of the research was to present the co-occurrence of risk behaviors connected with taking psychoactive substances and dysfunctional use of the internet among adolescents. The research was conducted in Poland (N = 667 students of secondary and upper-secondary level schools aged 12–19) during September–October 2015. The following tools were applied: the risk behaviors in virtual space 2.0 scale; the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale; the diagnostic survey—youth and psychoactive substances. Risk behaviors and attitudes in students during taking psychoactive substances were compared with their behaviors evidencing dysfunctional use of the internet. The analysis of correlations between risk behaviors in the real and virtual space indicates strong co-occurrence of some aspects of using psychoactive substances and online activities that result in negative consequences. However, for most of the categories of experiences with psychoactive substances it is observable that individuals who do not engage in risk behaviors in reality are less prone to use the internet in a dysfunctional manner. As both worlds infiltrate, these explanations turn out to be of particular value for the redefinition of prevention of risky behaviors among the adolescents. Correlations between the offline and online space enforce the development of new prevention programs which would cover both spheres.