Internet Addiction as One of the Main Types of Addiction in Modern High-School Students

Abstract

Nowadays, the Internet is a tool that is becoming imperative in everyday life. The pandemic in the modern world has exacerbated the problem of Internet addiction, creating the conditions for humanity to stay longer online. Since the majority of users are adolescents and young people, they form the main risk group, which is prone to Internet addiction. The purpose of the study was to explore the features of Internet addiction in high school students in modern Ukrainian society. The study included a comprehensive approach, which provided a combination of the following methods: theoretical (analysis, synthesis, generalisation, and systematisation of conceptual provisions on the problem under study); empirical (testing, in particular the method: “Chen Internet Addiction Scale” (CIAS adapted by L. Maligin, K. Feklisov); method of statistical processing. The paper reveals the problem of Internet addiction in high school students in modern conditions, the problems that arise in connection with such dependence, and considers the symptoms of Internet addiction and the reasons for its development. The study discusses the results of the investigation of Internet addiction in high school students, and also reveals differences in components of Internet addiction in adolescents with different levels of addiction. The findings show that most high-school students are prone to Internet addiction, which necessitates timely primary prevention of Internet addiction, starting in adolescence. In addition, a comparative analysis found that subjects with persistent Internet-dependent behaviour were more likely to have compulsive symptoms, withdrawal symptoms, tolerance symptoms, intrapersonal and health problems, time management problems, and stress