Prevalence of Internet Addiction and Associated Factors Among Medical Students From Mashhad, Iran in 2013

Abstract

Background:Problematic internet use is on the increase and has caused serious problems in many areas. This issue seems to be more important for medical students.Objectives:This study was designed to explore the prevalence of internet addiction and its related factors among the students of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences.Materials and Methods:A cross sectional study was conducted on 383 medical students of Mashhad in 2013. Four hundred participants were selected through two-stage stratified sampling method proportional to the number of students in each stage of education. Data Collection was done through using the Chen Internet Addiction Scale (CIAS) and a checklist of demographic details and characteristics of internet usage behavior.Results:It was found that 2.1% of the studied population were at risk and 5.2% were addicted users. Chatting with new people, communicating with friends and families, and playing games were the most popular activities in these groups. The factors related to internet addiction included: male sex, stage of education, daily time spent on using internet, most frequent time of internet use, monthly cost of use, and tea consumption.Conclusions:Although our study showed the prevalence of internet addiction was not more than other populations and universities, since the prevalence of internet addiction is rapidly increasing worldwide, this population might also be at risk of addiction. Thus, focusing on related factors can help us in designing more effective interventions and treatments for this susceptible group.

Internet Addiction and Associated Factors among Health Sciences Students in Nepal

“…In contrast to the study conducted in Taiwan, India and Iran, where gender was significantly different with (p<0.001), (p=0.006) and (p<0.001) [12,14,32]. A survey entitled "Internet Addiction and its Predictors in Guilan Medical Sciences Students, 2012" revealed significant difference between age, gender, marital status and level of study [15].…”

“…In spite of the increase in digital revolution which has contributed to increasing internet penetration rate from 25.82% to 32.78% of the total population of 26.49 million in Nepal [31][32][33] no study to the best of our knowledge, has attempted to assess internet related activities by its users. As such, this study sought to fill the observed gaps by determining the prevalence of Internet Addiction and factors contributing to it along with the activities carried out by them when online.…”

Expressed Needs of Students for Prevention of Internet Addiction: A Content Analysis Study

“…In Iran, studies have investigated the prevalence of IA, associated factors, and its effects among students based on quantitative research (10,17), however, they have not surveyed students' needs for the prevention of IA based on qualitative research. Qualitative research seeks to understand a given research problem and can produce a rich and deep description from the individual's perspective (20).…”

“…They discover new interactions with the world through the Internet and find the Internet to be a convenient choice for promoting themselves and communicating with others (17). However, Iranian students are worried about the pathological use of the Internet (3), which results in personal, family, academic, financial, and occupational problems (18).…”

Problematic Internet Use– An introduction and current status in Nepal

“…Despite the potential benefits, numerous problems such as exposure to inappropriate images and content, absence of privacy and addiction have been reported as a result of this increasing usage of internet. 24 Developmental stressors coupled with free access to internet services may contribute to college student's vulnerability to problematic internet use. 25 It is still unknown whether Internet addiction and these comorbid disorders could be explained by shared risk factors or considered as secondary disorders.…”