Internet addiction during the COVID-19 pandemic among adolescents in southeast Nigeria and implications for adolescent care in the post-pandemic era: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of internet addiction amongst adolescents in Southeast Nigeria during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) era. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out in 10 randomly selected secondary schools, 2 (one urban and one rural) each from Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi Enugu and Imo states of southeastern Nigeria between July and August 2021. Data on demographic variables were collected using a structured self-administered questionnaire. Young’s Internet Addiction Test was used to assess the extent of internet use. Analysis was done using the IBM SPSS Statistics version 23. The level of significance was set at a p-value of <0.05. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 16.2 ± 1.8 years and the male: female ratio was 1:1.6. Most of the adolescents (61.1%) used the internet for academic purposes, while 32.8% used it for social interactions and the majority (51.5%) used their phones. The prevalence of internet addiction was 88.1% (24.9% had mild, 59.6% had moderate, while 3.6% had severe addiction) and a good proportion of the respondents (81.1%) perceived addiction as bad. Internet addiction was significantly associated with the respondent’s age ( p = 0.043), mother’s level of education ( p = 0.023), family size ( p = 0.021), place of residence ( p = 0.035), alcohol intake ( p = 0.017), smoking ( p = 0.015), substance use ( p = 0.001) as well as the duration of internet use ( p < 0.001). Internet addiction was predicted by the male gender (adjusted odds ratio (AOR): 2.054; confidence interval (CI): 1.200–3.518), early adolescent age group (10–13 years) (AOR: 0.115; C1: 0.015–0.895) as well as the duration of internet use (AOR: 0.301; CI: 0.189–0.479). Conclusions: The prevalence of internet addiction among adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic era was high. The predictors of addiction were the male gender, early adolescent age group and duration of internet use.

From Reward to Anhedonia-Dopamine Function in the Global Mental Health Context

“…Future research on dopamine interactions, from the molecular, cellular, and integrative brain circuitry levels, and their underlying behaviors has acquired a novel global significance in this new mental health context [ 89 , 143 , 146 ]. This paper prompts further investigations into the still underexplored links between dopamine-mediated reward functions, serotonin functions, inflammatory responses, hormonal functions, and their implications for pathological brain adaptation.…”

“…Interdependent variables such as sociocultural factors, biological vulnerabilities (genetic predisposition and preexisting metabolic disorders), and psychological factors (personality characteristics and a negative affect) play a critical role [ 135 , 136 , 137 , 138 , 139 , 140 ]. Excessive seeking of the new digital drug and addiction to the internet have been identified as part of the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a major impact on the mental health of predominantly young people and teenagers [ 138 , 139 , 140 , 141 , 142 , 143 , 144 , 145 , 146 ]. This involves, like all compulsive behavior loops, the brain’s reward circuitry, with all the complex interactions between environmental, metabolic, and neurobiological changes in the brain discussed above.…”

“…ital drug and addiction to the internet have been identified as part of the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a major impact on the mental health of predominantly young people and teenagers [138][139][140][141][142][143][144][145][146]. This involves, like all compulsive behavior loops, the brain's reward circuitry, with all the complex interactions between environmental, metabolic, and neurobiological changes in the brain discussed above.…”

Socio-demographic and mental health correlates of internet addiction amongst Hong Kong university students under COVID-19

“… Gavurova et al (2022) revealed significant gender difference in IA among Slovak college students ( N = 1,677), with males showing higher levels of overall IA and its subdomains including neglect of work and social life, and lack of control. Similarly, compared to female secondary school students in Nigeria, males showed a roughly 2-fold higher likelihood of being Internet addicted (N = 851; Onukwuli et al, 2023 ). These findings are consistent with research prior to the pandemic indicating higher rates of IA among male students ( Liang et al, 2016 ; Vigna-Taglianti et al, 2017 ).…”

“…Regarding gender differences in IA, the basic picture is that men have significantly higher rates of IA than women ( Anand et al, 2018 ; Onukwuli et al, 2023 ), although there are minor exceptions ( Yang et al, 2021 ). Obviously, it is important to ask whether gender would interact with other factors to shape IA.…”