Problematic Internet Use in Undergraduate Health Science Students at a Remote Place of Nepal: a Cross-Sectional Study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61814/jkahs.v6i2.836Keywords:
Computers, Health Science, Internet Use, Medical Education, Nepal, PIUAbstract
Background: Problematic internet use (PIU) is a growing concern among teenage and college students. Excessive internet use has detrimental effects on physical and mental health. This study aims to assess the computer usage pattern and calculate the frequency of PIU in undergraduate health science students at Karnali Academy of Health Sciences, Jumla, a remote place of Nepal.
Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted from October to November 2022. Data were collected from all the undergraduate students who consented to participate. The questionnaire included students’ computer-related behaviours. PIU was defined as a score of 42 or above on the PIU questionnaire. Data were analyzed by descriptive and analytical statistics, keeping p value <0.05 as significant.
Results: Among 127 students, majority used smartphones and laptops, primarily for social media. The mean duration of internet use was 6.09±2.63 years, with an average daily use of 2.54±2.05 hours on weekdays and 3.88±2.2 hours on weekends. The prevalence of PIU among the participants was 43.3%, which was not significantly different by gender (p=0.094). The PIU score was positively correlated with annual income of family, years of internet use, and daily screen and internet use time (p<0.05).
Conclusion: PIU is prevalent among undergraduate health science students at Karnali Academy. The findings emphasize the need for awareness, guidance, and proper planning to promote healthy internet usage habits among students. Educational institutions should play an active role in implementing strategies to address PIU and support students for a healthy internet use.
References
Boudabous J, Feki I, Sellami R, Baati I, Trigui D, Masmoudi J. Anxiety and Problematic Internet Use in Tunisian students. La Tunisie medicale. 2020 Oct 1;98(10):745-9. [Full Text] [PubMed]
Haroon Z, Zeb Z, Javed Z, Awan Z, Aftab Z, Talat W. Internet addiction in medical students. Journal of Ayub Medical College Abbottabad. 2019 Dec 10;30(4-Sup). [Full Text] [PubMed]
Yang CK. Sociopsychiatric characteristics of adolescents who use computers to excess. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica. 2001 Sep;104(3):217-22. [DOI] [PubMed]
D'Angelo J, Moreno MA. Screening for Problematic Internet Use. Pediatrics. 2020 May 1;145(Suppl 2):S181-5. [Full Text] [DOI] [PubMed]
Cash H, D Rae C, H Steel A, Winkler A. Internet addiction: A brief summary of research and practice. Current psychiatry reviews. 2012 Nov 1;8(4):292-8. [Full Text] [DOI]
Demetrovics Z, Szeredi B, Rózsa S. The three-factor model of Internet addiction: The development of the Problematic Internet Use Questionnaire. Behavior research methods. 2008 May;40:563-74. [DOI] [PubMed]
Balhara YP, Doric A, Stevanovic D, Knez R, Singh S, Chowdhury MR, Kafali HY, Sharma P, Vally Z, Vu TV, Arya S. Correlates of Problematic Internet Use among college and university students in eight countries: An international cross-sectional study. Asian Journal of Psychiatry. 2019 Oct 1;45:113-20. [Full Text] [DOI] [PubMed]
Dhamnetiya D, Singh S, Jha RP. Correlates of problematic internet use among undergraduate medical students of Delhi. BMC psychiatry. 2021 Dec;21(1):1-8. [Full Text] [DOI] [PubMed]
Bhandari PM, Neupane D, Rijal S, Thapa K, Mishra SR, Poudyal AK. Sleep quality, internet addiction and depressive symptoms among undergraduate students in Nepal. BMC psychiatry. 2017 Dec;17:1-8. [Full Text] [DOI] [PubMed]
Bharati M, Chalise GD, Bhandari S, Ambu KC, Regmi K, Adhikari B, Gautam P. Experience of Cyberbullying among Nursing Students. Journal of Karnali Academy of Health Sciences. 2021 Aug 31;4(2). [Full Text]
Vadher SB, Panchal BN, Vala AU, Ratnani IJ, Vasava KJ, Desai RS, Shah AH. Predictors of problematic Internet use in school going adolescents of Bhavnagar, India. International Journal of Social Psychiatry. 2019 Mar;65(2):151-7. [DOI] [PubMed]
Regmi K, Amgain K. Needs, Challenges, and Opportunities in Establishing and Maintaining Medical Education in Karnali Academy of Health Sciences (KAHS). Journal of Karnali Academy of Health Sciences. 2019 Aug 13;2(2). [Full Text] [DOI]
Sharma P, Shakya R, Singh S, Balhara YP. An online survey of problematic internet use and its correlates among undergraduate medical students of Nepal. Neurology, Psychiatry and Brain Research. 2020 Sep 1;37:95-9. [Full Text] [DOI]
Anderson KJ. Internet use among college students: An exploratory study. Journal of American College Health. 2001 Jul 1;50(1):21-6. [Full Text] [DOI] [PubMed]
Taha MH, Shehzad K, Alamro AS, Wadi M. Internet use and addiction among medical students in Qassim University, Saudi Arabia. Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal. 2019 May;19(2):e142. [Full Text] [DOI] [PubMed]
Pramanik T, Sherpa MT, Shrestha R. Internet addiction in a group of medical students: a cross sectional study. Nepal Medical College Journal: NMCJ. 2012 Mar 1;14(1):46-8. [Full Text] [PubMed]
Singh S, Datta M, Gupta P, Batra S. Predictors of ‘problematic internet use’ among adolescents and adults amid the pandemic in India. Clinical Epidemiology and Global Health. 2022 May 1;15:101036. [Full Text] [DOI]
Acharya S. Internet usage of teenagers in Nepal for educational purposes. An analysis of internet usage behaviour of 15-17-year-old students at selected schools in Kathmandu. 2016:15-7. [Full Text] [Google Scholar]
Shakya R, Sharma P. Problematic Internet Use–An introduction and current status in Nepal. Journal of Psychiatrists' Association of Nepal. 2015;4(2):4-9. [Full Text] [Google Scholar]
Shrestha S, Haque S, Dawadi S, Giri RA. Preparations for and practices of online education during the Covid-19 pandemic: A study of Bangladesh and Nepal. Education and information technologies. 2022 Jan 1:1-23. [Full Text] [DOI] [PubMed]
EPI. Young people's wellbeing. EPI website, 2021. Available at: https://epi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/EPI-PT_Young-people%E2%80%99s-wellbeing_Jan2021.pdf
Rahman S, Mithun MN. Effect of social media use on academic performance among university students in Bangladesh. Asian Journal of Education and Social Studies. 2021 Aug 26;20(3):1-2. [Full Text] [Google Scholar]
Esteve A. The business of personal data: Google, Facebook, and privacy issues in the EU and the USA. International Data Privacy Law. 2017 Feb 1;7(1):36-47. [DOI] [Google Scholar]
1. Chen BX. The Battle for Digital Privacy is reshaping the internet [Internet]. The New York Times; 2021 [cited 2023 Jul 17]. Available from: nytimes.com/2021/09/16/technology/digital-privacy.html
Jørgensen RF, Desai T. Right to privacy meets online platforms: Exploring privacy complaints against Facebook and Google. Nordic Journal of Human Rights. 2017 Apr 3;35(2):106-26. [Full Text] [Google Scholar]
Vigderman A. The Data Big Tech companies have on you [Internet]. Centerfield Media Company ; 2023 [cited 2023 Jul 17]. Available from: security.org/resources/data-tech-companies-have/
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Jay Jha, Dilli Bahadur Pun, Kapil Amgain, Hiramani Prasad Chaudhary
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
The author(s) retain the copyright and the full publishing right without restriction under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0) which allows readers to share (copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format) and adapt (remix, transform, and build upon the material) for any purpose, even commercially, provided the work is properly attributed. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Author(s) grant the non-exclusive publishing right to the Journal of Karnali Academy of Health Sciences (JKAHS). The publishing rights include the rights to publish, reproduce, distribute, include in indexes or search databases or other media in print or online. The JKAHS may require revisions to the manuscript before acceptance for publication or may choose not to publish it based on the judgement of the editors. Further, JKAHS might retract, withdraw, or publish a correction or other notice after publication, if such publication would be inconsistent with the good publication practices and associated guidelines set forth by the COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) (https://publicationethics.org/core-practices).
More information about the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License can be found in the webpage of Creative Commons (CC) by following the link provided below: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
