The Russian rural school children of adolescent age as Internet users

Abstract

In Russia, the society shares the opinion that children, adolescents and the youth are the main users of the Internet. However, the information impact of the Internet on the emerging consciousness, intelligence, life values of younger generation is ambiguous and requires comprehensive and in-depth study. Materials and methods. In 2016-2017, large-scale sample study of prevalence and peculiarities of Internet use in rural teenagers aged 15-17 years was carried out in Russia, covering 17 Oblasts from 6 Federal Okrugs of Russia. The sampling consisted of 18 222 rural teenagers (8 208 boys and 10 014 girls). The set of material (questionnaires), formation of databases and their statistical processing was carried out using software program "The Risk Factors". According to the data study, prevalence of Internet use among boys was 96.1 and among girls 97.2 out of 100 adolescents of the appropriate age and sex. Besides, 85.4% of boys and 90.0% of girls used the Internet on daily basis and 44.4% of boys and 60.4% of girls - 3 hours or more per day. Teenagers using the Internet every day during 3 hours or more constitute "risk group" since they have both social and psychological difficulties and high risk of developing Internet addiction. Despite the differences in the age of the respondent's gradations in frequency and duration of Internet using, the results of study correspond to data of studies carried out in different years by the Internet Development Fund and testify high level of prevalence of Internet use among schoolchildren. The results of the study revealed the emerging problems in rural schoolchildren of adolescent age due to long (3 hours or more per day) use of the Internet, as well as the need to teach them to appropriate, dosed and effective use of the Internet, which would broaden mind, increase academic performance and enrich leisure activities.