Positive Internet Use Research Articles

Positive Internet use and online civic engagement versus active involvement in selected online risks – how are both connected in adolescents from six European countries?

Usage of the Internet by young people has been historically analyzed through two main paradigms: the paradigm of risk, where the Internet has been viewed at large as a factor that endangers young people development; and the paradigm of opportunities, showing the Internet as a potentially positive factor supporting individual and social development. Those two dichotomous approaches are nowadays dismissed and replaced by more nuanced and holistic approach to online engagement of young generation. The article attempts to show critical relationships between engagement of young people in positive versus risk online behaviors. It uses the data from the second wave of large sample taking part in a longitudinal study on online skills in ySkills Horizon research project. The study uses Wave 2. convenient sample (N = 7,107) from six countries (Estonia, Finland, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal) aged 12-19 years (M = 15.37, SD = 1.36). The results generally show that three selected online risk behaviors (intended viewing cyberhate, intended viewing online harmful content, and incorrect health decisions based on information viewed online) are co-occurring with the level of online civic engagement and the number of online activities. It shows that positive online involvement not clearly protect young people from involvement in serious online risks. From practical perspective, this study results provide useful insights to the methodology of media education, particularly in terms of online risks prevention measures that should also include content concerning online opportunities.

Cyberloafing in the classroom: A qualitative study with Nigerian undergraduate students

Background and Objective: The rise of academic cyberloafing — the non-academic use of internet connections during class — has emerged as a concern within the university context. While cyberloafing in the workplace has received ample attention, its counterpart in educational settings, particularly in Nigeria, remains less explored. This study aimed to explore and describe the experiences and perspectives of undergraduate students at a private Nigerian university regarding cyberloafing. Method: Using an adaption of the Cyberloafing in Educational Settings Scale, this study targeted a class of 15 final-year library and information science students. Data collected online underwent qualitative description and was presented verbatim. Results: Though students were unfamiliar with the term 'cyberloafing,' they acknowledged participating in such behaviors. The findings revealed habitual social media use during class hours, the employment of online tools for academic purposes, and a prevalent trend of gaming activities, often driven by internet addiction and boredom. Students also conveyed an understanding of the potential downsides and benefits of digital engagements during academic hours. Conclusion: The study urges university policymakers to implement measures promoting positive internet use and incorporate ethical cyber behavior awareness into curricula. It further recommends that parents and lecturers foster proper online usage and advocates for society-wide campaigns to raise awareness about ethical digital technology behavior.

Social Isolation and Online Relationship-Risk Encounters among Adolescents with Special Educational Needs

While all vulnerable adolescents are more at risk online than their non-vulnerable peers, those with special educational needs (SEN) require targeted and specialised support. Although they are not a homogenous group, SEN adolescents commonly experience social isolation and a lack of connection or meaningful relationships with peers in their offline lives. Many perceive the internet as a route to alternative means of communicating and interacting with others. Accessibility tools enable autonomous access to the online world, which offers support groups, new friends, entertainment, and connections. This can lead to both potential online relationship-risk encounters and positive experiences. With the attraction of online environments comes the need for digital skills and awarness of possible online risks, yet for adolescents with SEN, their difficulties dictate a need for more than rules, controls, and digital skills. In this study, 4894 adolescents aged 13 to 17, of whom 1207 had SEN, completed the Cybersurvey 2019, an online questionnaire about their digital life. Adolescents were asked about the benefits of using the internet, their online safety support, offline social support, and any online relationship-risk encounters. All participants were recruited through their schools. Descriptive statistics and multiple analysis of variance tests showed that, compared with their peers, adolescents with SEN experienced significantly more social isolation and less parental online safety support. They were also more likely to use the internet for positive purposes, such as socialising and coping. Overall, adolescents with SEN encountered more online relationship risks than their non-SEN peers, with older teens more likely to encounter such risks than younger peers, regardless of their SEN status. Multiple analysis of variance tests also identified that boys perceive internet use as positive to a greater extent than girls, suggesting a gender difference in experiences of the digital environment. A multiple linear hierarchical regression revealed that SEN status, age, social isolation, poor parental online safety support, and greater perceived positive internet use, all significantly predicted online relationship-risk encounters. This article discusses important implications and recommendations for policy and practice related to SEN and online safety and highlights areas for future research to consider.

Socialization of Positive Internet Use for Children

The purpose of this activity is to provide an understanding for parents of students and children to monitor internet use and find out its positive and negative impacts. Service activities only involve 2 stages of activity, the first is socialization and the second is discussion. This community service activity is intended so that parents and the community can understand and monitor the use of the internet for children. Activities that have been carried out are in the form of socializing positive internet use for children with 70 participants from Banda Aceh City. The usefulness of this community service activity is evaluated through a questionnaire with a benefit test. The results of the questionnaire show a percentage of 67% which states that the socialization of internet use in children is very useful to be applied in real life today.

Association of dental caries with use of internet and social media among 12 and 15-year-olds

Objectives To investigate the association of dental caries with use of internet and social media to gain information on oral health and to evaluate the impact of this practice on oral health inequalities among 12 and 15-year-olds. Methods Data from the Children’s Dental Health Survey (CDHS) 2013, England Wales and Northern Ireland were used. The survey included sociodemographic, health behaviours, use of internet and social media, and clinical dental data. The association between the prevalence of caries experience (DMFT ≥ 1) and the number of untreated dental decay with use of internet and social media was assessed adjusting for age, gender, country, deprivation, toothbrushing, dental visits and consumption of sugary drinks and food. Results A total of 4414 children were included in the analysis. Children who reported using internet and social media to gain information on oral health had significantly higher odds for caries experience (1.29, 95%CI: 1.03–1.62) in the model adjusting for age, gender and country. After adjusting for behavioural and socioeconomic factors the relationship remained positive, but not statistically significant. The use of internet and social media was not significantly associated with the number of untreated caries. Social gradients in oral health remained significant after adjusting for use of internet and social media. Conclusions The association between use of internet and social media, and dental caries could be mediated by health behaviours. Younger adults and children may be using the Internet and social media seeking information on dental caries, but longer online hours may also increase the caries risk. Internet-based health interventions should be supported by preventive strategies to promote effective and positive internet use.

Adapting New Technologies of Exposure and Promotion for Agro-Tourism Enterprises with Comparative Evaluations

As we are well aware that today the positive use of internet and shared websites comprise of various strong and prolific tools for business for the promotion of their products and services through world-wide advertisement, especially for small businesses in the rural areas. The paper at hand comprises of initial comparative study of the websites of the agro-tourism enterprises, which are located in Central Macedonia in Greece, with the very specific aim of investigating their adaptability plan and criteria towards the new technologies of exposure and promotion, since Central Macedonia is a larger and more developed region. Initially in 2010, 158 websites of agro-tourism enterprises were assessed, which were again surveyed in 2018. Through a census process, the data collecting method was adopted in this research, whereas the websites’ assessment was conducted with the assistance of five criteria process, viz. content, interactivity, site attractiveness, promotional value and security, which were selected through literature review on the relevant subject. The evaluation confirmed our assumptions that the adaptability of new technologies for the agro-tourism enterprises in Central Macedonia, Greece had improved, but the results of all evaluation criteria tend to show very low improvement, as seen in this century.

Rebirth of Democracy in Pakistan Through Internet

Objectives: Current study objects to investigate; 1. how democratic attitude of youth is being affected by their attitude towards internet, 2. what is the democratic attitude of the youth according to the usage of internet? and 3. provision of internet benefits for democratic consolidation. Methodology: In this regard a survey was conducted among the students of computer science and information technology departments/ institutions of four universities of Pakistan belonging to various provinces of the country, such as; University of Sindh, Jamshoro; Punjab University Lahore; Balochistan University Quetta and University of Peshawar. In total 600 questionnaires were distributed. Researchers became able to collect back 482 questionnaires. Out of these questionnaires 427 questionnaires were found valid after deducting missing values and outliers. Findings: Current study finds a significant and positive correlation between student’s attitude towards the subscale of internet such as; using internet in research, using internet in social interaction, liking to use internet in teaching, using internet in sharing information; and the subscale of democracy like; inclination to democracy; devotion to democracy and qualities of democracies; Adverse to the positive relation, this study also finds a negative correlation between negative view of democracy, using internet in research and liking to use internet in teaching. The study claims that merely laws and regulations are not sufficient to fulfill democratic needs but democratic education and values must be enhanced individually and collectively. Furthermore, it finds internet as a most powerful tool to highlight loopholes in the system. Applications: Current study may help to enhance the positive use of internet in democratic process generally and in electoral process particularly. Moreover, study contributes in understanding the attitude of young generation towards internet and its linkage with government and democratic issues. Keywords: Attitude, Democracy, Informational Technology, Internet, Pakistan

From solitude to solicitation: How people with intellectual disability or autism spectrum disorder use the internet

Very little is known about how people with intellectual disability (ID) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) use the Internet. However, we do know that many of them have limited social circles. Electronic social media could facilitate the development of relationships, increase social participation and reduce social isolation for these people. However it may also expose users to unwanted encounters. Our exploratory study attempts to get a glimpse of Internet experiences of young adults with ID or ASD. Eight participants (five with ID and three with ASD) whose mean age was 25 years participated in this preliminary study. A sociodemographic and Internet use questionnaire was administered with the help of the participants’ support worker. Seven participants agreed to be interviewed by one of the researchers in a separate meeting, in the presence of their support worker. Results show that all participants enjoyed using the Internet for communicating (e.g. Facebook, e‑mail, chatrooms, dating sites) or entertainment (e.g. watching videos, listening to music). Three male subjects played games online, and only participants with ASD (without ID) created content (e.g. website or blog). All interviewees with ID and two of the three with ASD had distressing experiences including: being insulted online, having false rumors spread, receiving threats or being targets of sexual cyber-solicitation. Users with ID have had to rely on friends, parents or social workers to avoid or rectify cyber-victimization episodes. Internet access has opened a wide window of opportunity for people with ID and ASD, but more education and support is needed to ensure safe and positive Internet use by this population.

Post-operative physiotherapy in foreign medical interventions during humanitarian crises: a literature review

These all can ultimately affect academic performance of a student. Various studies indicate the effect of pathological internet use on academic performance as well as physical and mental health, but no study has found the prevalence of pathological internet use and its psychological consequences among undergraduate physiotherapy students. Purpose:This cross sectional study intends to estimate the prevalence of pathological internet use among undergraduate students of an Indian university. Secondary objective of this study is to find the correlation between pathological internet use and academic performance, depression and general health. Methods: A questionnaire set is distributed among undergraduate physiotherapy students enrolled in an Indian university (n= 175). Informed written consent was obtained from all the participants before the study. Out of total responses those who were not willing to participate have been excluded. So, the response rate of this study is 84.57% (n= 148). The survey instrument consistDemographic details and previously validated and reliableYoung’s InternetAddictionQuestionnaire, Beck’sDepression Inventory andGeneral Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) which are most commonly used to measure what it intends to. Results: The mean age of participants is 18.98± 1.24 years with high female representation (83%). Prevalence rate of Internet addiction is 34.5% (n= 51) with more than 99% (n= 147) are using internet. Mean time of internet use is 4.43± 0.78 hours. The Average Expense for internet use is 258 INR. Because of internet addiction, 15% (n= 22) have moderate depression and 29.72% (n= 44) have borderline clinical depression. 25%(n= 37) of students have found to have psychological distress because of internet usage. There is positive correlation between academic performance and their internet usage (r= 0.7458). Conclusion(s): Internet addiction is currently becoming a serious mental health problem among undergraduate physiotherapy college students. Internet addiction, as a new challenge in the health care system is needed to be prevented and cured considerably. The academic performance of students improves with the internet usage, which suggests increase usage of internet should be necessary for physiotherapy students. Implications: Results of this study are useful in policy and guideline formulation for the students for a positive use of internet. It will also help to resolve the physical as well as psycho-social consequences of internet addiction.