Year : 2018, Volume : 6, Issue : 2
First page : ( 58) Last page : ( 68)
Print ISSN : 0000-0000. Online ISSN : 2320-6233.
Article DOI : 10.5958/2320-6233.2018.00013.5

A study of Internet addiction and its association with Big Five Personality Traits in Indian adolescents.

Julka Shibani Ms.¹, Post graduate Student

¹Indira Gandhi National Open UniversityNew Delhi

Abstract

Problematic Internet use (PIU) or internet addiction to say is that manner of using internet which can lead to psychological, social, educational, or vocational problems in one’s life. In today’s world as computer and Internet use has become a staple of everyday life, there runs a risk of overuse and dependence, which has lead to addiction and in addition may lead to personality problems along with other psychopathologies. Methods: A non- experimental study was conducted among school going adolescentsof age between 15-17 years having access to internet facility in daily routine(n=100). Big Five Personality Inventory was administered to assess the personality and Young’s Internet Addiction Test(IAT: Young, 1998) was self administered by the students after briefing them with the instructions. Subjects were classified into Mild users, Moderate users and addicts for comparison. It was hypothesized that a significant negative correlation will exists between Internet addiction and Big Five Personality Traits. Result: of 100 adolescents who took part in the study,40% were found to be addicted, 25% were moderate users and 35% mild users. Users found addicted scored poorly on the Big Five Personality Traits as hypothesized indicating negative correlation. Conclusion: The findings from this study identify varied levels of internet usage among adolescents which could serve as a crucial factor in understanding its effects on the personality as adolescence is very influential period of transition in one’s life. The findings further imply that there is a need for early interventions such as setting boundaries or professional help in addition to detecting early warning signs of underlying psychopathologies.

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Key Words:

Internet addiction, Adolescents, Personality traits, Internet Addiction Test, Big five personality inventory.

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