a descriptive study to assess the knowledge and attitude ... - wjpps

WORLD JOURNAL OF PHARMACY AND PHARMACEUTICAL SCIENCES Karthika et al.

World Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences

SJIF Impact Factor 6.647

Volume 6, Issue 9, 477-503

Review Article

ISSN 2278 – 4357

A DESCRIPTIVE STUDY TO ASSESS THE KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDE REGARDING INTERNET USAGE AND ITS ADDICTION LEVEL AMONG STUDENTS STUDYING IN SELECTED COLLEGES OF AMBALA, HARYANA S. Karthika*, Amanpreet Kaur, Annu Saini, Bawandeep Kaur, Bharti, Damini, Gunjan Asst. Prof, MMIN, MMU, Ambala, Haryana.

Article Received on 27 June 2017,

ABSTRACT Background: There has been an explosive growth of internet use not

Revised on 18 July 2017, Accepted on 08 August 2017,

in India but also worldwide in the last decade. Internet addiction is

DOI: 10.20959/wjpps20179-9981

characterized by excessive or poor controlled preoccupations, urges or behaviours regarding computer use & internet access that lead to

*Corresponding Author

impairment or distress. Objective: 1) To assess the knowledge &

S. Karthika

attitude internet usage among students. 2) To assess the level of

Asst. Prof, MMIN, MMU, Ambala, Haryana.

internet addiction among students. Methods: A descriptive study was undertaken in different college covering 300 students from various

department of engineering, arts, commerce & others in Ambala, Haryana. Using pencil technique every student had been given time of 15-20 mins. Result: The study revealed that 59.66% of students often switch to excessive computer use & internet access. It also shows that 72% of females residing in hostel (48.55%) ue internet in android (75%) with main purpose to update knowledge (43.33%) using 4G data (34.33%). About 58% of students had average knowledge regarding internet usage, 66.33% majority of students had average attitude, 31% of adults had below average attitude. Further the study reveals that majority 59% of students had faced problems due to occasional usage, 1.33% of students had no problems regarding internet addiction. Conclusion: Internet addiction is growing problem among students of professional courses which have psychological, physical and social impact in their life. Hence awareness should be created and strategies should be developed to bring out positive outcome rather than negative which leads to destruction of human nature. KEYWORDS: Internet, addiction, knowledge, attitude, computer, students.

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Vol 6, Issue 9 2017.

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BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY “The Internet is so big, so powerful and pointless that for some people it is a complete substitute for life. -Andrew Brown” Human beings are social animals, and the tenure of our social life is one of the most important influences on our mental health. Without positive, durable relationships, both our minds and our bodies fall apart. Most of human history was spent in small groups in which each was dependent on the others for survival, and evidence suggests this is the condition to which we are best adapted.[1] Mobile technology is the technology used for cellular communication. Mobile code division multiple access (CDMA) technology has evolved rapidly over the past few years. The next generation of smart phones are going to be context-aware, taking advantage of the growing availability of embedded physical sensors and data exchange abilities. Along with the future of a smart phone comes the future of another device. Omnitouch is a device in which applications can be viewed and used on hand, arm, wall, desk, or any other everyday surface. The device uses a sensor touch interface, which enables the user to access all the functions through the use of finger touch. It was developed at Carnegie Mellon University. This device uses a projector and camera that is worn on the person's shoulder, with no controls other than the user's fingers.[2] By the turn of the century, information, including access to the Internet, will be the basis for personal, economic, and political advancement. The Internet links are computer networks all over the world so that users can share resources and communicate with each other. Some computers, have direct access to all the facilities on the Internet such as the universities. And other computers, eg privately-owned ones, have indirect links through a commercial service provider, who offers some or all of the Internet facilities.[3] The internet is a global wide area network that connect computer system across the world. It include several high bandwidth data line that comprise the internet ―backbone.‖ These lines are connected to major internet hubs that distribute data to other location such as web servers and internet service providers.[4] Now the point that has been placed next is in a series like research, education, financial transaction, real time updates, leisure, booking tickets, job search, writing blogs, online

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shopping etc. A modem may be a part of the computer or a stand-along device that is connected to the computer and phone line.[9] The term World Wide Web (WWW) refers to the collection of public Web sites connected to the Internet worldwide, together with the client devices such as computers and cell phones that access its content. For many years it has become known simply as "the Web." Competition among Web browsers continues to be strong as IE and Firefox continue to enjoy large followings, Google has established its Chrome browser as a market contender, and Apple continues to advance the Safari browser. HTML5 re-established HTML as a modern Web technology after having stagnated for many years. Similarly, the performance enhancements of HTTP version 2 have ensured the protocol will remain viable for the foreseeable future.[10] In the midst of all these advantages, there are some drawbacks of internet usage which affects the globe widely. The curiosity to know and learn new things slowly ended up with addiction. In general addiction is a complex disease, often chronic in nature, which affects the functioning of the brain and body. It also causes serious damage to families, relationships, schools, workplaces and neighborhoods. The most common symptoms of addiction are severe loss of control, continued use despite serious consequences, preoccupation with using, failed attempts to quit, tolerance and withdrawal. Addiction can be effectively prevented, treated and managed by health care professionals in combination with family or peer support.[11] Addiction is a chronic disorder with biological, psychological, social and environmental factors influencing its development and maintenance. About half the risk for addiction is genetic. Genes affect the degree of reward that individuals experience when initially using a substance (e.g., drugs) or engaging in certain behaviors (e.g., gambling), as well as the way the body processes alcohol or other drugs. Heightened desire to re-experience use of the substance or behavior, potentially influenced by psychological (e.g., stress, history of trauma), social (e.g., family or friends' use of a substance), and environmental factors (e.g., accessibility of a substance, low cost) can lead to regular use/exposure, with chronic use/exposure leading to brain changes.

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These brain changes include alterations in cortical (pre-frontal cortex) and sub-cortical (limbic system) regions involving the neuro-circuitry of reward, motivation, memory, impulse control and judgment. This can lead to dramatic increases in cravings for a drug or activity, as well as impairments in the ability to successfully regulate this impulse, despite the knowledge and experience of many consequences related to the addictive behavior.[12] Internet addiction is defined as any online-related, compulsive behavior which interferes with normal living and causes severe stress on family, friends, loved ones, and one‘s work environment. Internet addiction has been called Internet dependency and Internet compulsivity. By any name, it is a compulsive behavior that completely dominates the addict‘s life. Internet addicts make the Internet a priority more important than family, friends, and work. The Internet becomes the organizing principle of addicts‘ lives.[13] In a true addiction, a person becomes compulsively dependent upon a particular kind of stimulation to the point where obtaining a steady supply of that stimulation becomes the sole and central focus of their lives. The addict increasingly neglects his work duties, relationships and ultimately even his health in his drive to remain stimulated.[14] A research conducted by IAMAI (Internet and Mobile Association of India) and IMRB International (Indian Market Research Bureau) in June 2013, indicates that the Internet usage in India has gone up with more and more Internet users using the Internet on a regular basis. In June 2013, India had 190 Million Internet Users, of this; 130 Million belonged to Urban India and the rest 60 Million were from Rural India. Rapid expansion and proliferation of the internet has provided better opportunities for communication, information and social interaction. However, the excessive undisciplined use by some individuals has led to the emergence of the concept of internet addiction.[15] India now has the world's third-largest national digital population, with approximately 120 million internet users in 2011. The number of internet users in India has grown five-fold since 2005. Mobile Internet usage is growing at the rate of nearly 85% per annum, with nearly 75% of nonvoice usage being devoted to entertainment, where video and music streaming are major growth activities. The understanding that the internet use can be a disorder is still in its initial stages in India. There are limited numbers of studies estimating how common the issue of internet addiction is in India. In a study carried out by Yadav et al., among high school

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students in Ahmadabad India, there was a strong positive correlation between internet addiction and depression, anxiety and stress. Need of the Study “The internet has been a boon and a curse for teenagers”-J. K. Rowling The Internet and mobile technology are increasingly important to the educational and social lives of children, and are becoming a part of children‘s identity. As one young person said to Childnet at one of its recent focus group meetings, ―Take away my mobile phone and you take away a part of me.[19] College students are especially vulnerable to developing dependence on the Internet, more than most other segments of the society. This can be attributed to several factors including the following: Availability of time; ease of use; unlimited access to the Internet; the psychological and developmental characteristics of young adulthood; limited or no parental supervision; an expectation of Internet/computer use implicitly if not explicitly, as some courses are Internet-dependent, from assignments and projects to communication with peers and mentors; the Internet offering a route of escape from exam stress, all of which make Internet overuse a significant cause of concern for parents and faculty.[16] Students use mobile phones while walking to class, riding on a bus, or waiting for an elevator. These ‗micro time slots‘ in which people can engage in a mind-boggling array of online activities were not previously available. That can be an enormous advantage for educators eager to draw on spaced learning to improve student learning outcomes. But obsessive smart phone checking can also interfere with face-to-face relationships and impair academic performance.[17] Similar to other addictions, those suffering from Internet addiction use the virtual fantasy world to connect with real people through the Internet, as a substitution for real-life human connection, which they are unable to achieve normally.[18] Internet addiction appears to be a common disorder that merits inclusion in DSM-V. Conceptually, the diagnosis is a compulsive-impulsive spectrum disorder that involves online and/or offline computer usage and consists of at least three subtypes: excessive gaming, sexual preoccupations, and e-mail/text messaging. All of the variants share the following four components: 1) excessive use, often associated with a loss of sense of time or a neglect of

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basic drives, 2) withdrawal, including feelings of anger, tension and/or depression when the computer is inaccessible, 3) tolerance, including the need for better computer equipment, more software, or more hours of use and 4) negative repercussions, including arguments, lying, poor achievement, social isolation and fatigue. Some of the most interesting research on Internet addiction has been published in South Korea. After a series of 10 cardiopulmonary-related deaths in Internet cafés and a gamerelated murder, South Korea considers Internet addiction one of its most serious public health issues.[7] Using data from 2006, the South Korean government estimates that approximately 210,000 South Korean children (2.1%; ages 6–19) are afflicted and require treatment.[5] About 80% of those needing treatment may need psychotropic medications and perhaps 20% to 24% require hospitalization.[7] Since the average South Korean high school student spends about 23 hours each week gaming, another 1.2 million are believed to be at risk for addiction and to require basic counseling. In particular, therapists worry about the increasing number of individuals dropping out from school or work to spend time on computers. As of June 2007, South Korea has trained 1,043 counselors in the treatment of Internet addiction and enlisted over 190 hospitals and treatment centers. Preventive measures are now being introduced into schools. China is also greatly concerned about the disorder. At a recent conference, Tao Ran, Ph.D., Director of Addiction Medicine at Beijing Military Region Central Hospital, reported 13.7% of Chinese adolescent Internet users meet Internet addiction diagnostic criteria—about 10 million teenagers. As a result, in 2007 China began restricting computer game use; current laws now discourage more than 3 hours of daily game use. In the United States, accurate estimates of the prevalence of the disorder are lacking. Unlike in Asia, where Internet cafés are frequently used, in the United States games and virtual sex are accessed from the home. Attempts to measure the phenomenon are clouded by shame, denial, and minimization. The issue is further complicated by comorbidity. About 86% of Internet addiction cases have some other DSM-IV diagnosis present. In one study, the average patient had 1.5 other diagnoses. In the United States, patients generally present only for the comorbid condition(s). Thus, unless the therapist is specifically looking for Internet addiction, it is unlikely to be detected. In Asia, however, therapists are taught to screen for it.

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Despite the cultural differences, our case descriptions are remarkably similar to those of our Asian colleagues, and we appear to be dealing with the same issue. Unfortunately, Internet addiction is resistant to treatment, entails significant risks, and has high relapse rates. Moreover, it also makes comorbid disorders less responsive to therapy.[2] Internet addiction results in personal, family, academic, financial and occupational problems that are characterized of other addiction. Impairments of real life relationship are disrupted as a result excessive use of the internet. Individuals suffering from internet addiction spend more time in solitary seclusions spend less time with real people in their lives and are often viewed as socially awkward. Arguments may result due to volume of time spend online. Those suffering from internet addiction may attempt to conceal the amount of time spent online, which results in distrust and the disturbance of quality in once stable relationships. Among suffering from internet addiction may create online personas or profiles where they are able to alter their identities and pretend to be someone other than himself or herself those that highest risk for creation of a secret life are those who from low –life esteem feelings of inadequacy, and fear of disapproval. Such negative self-concepts lead to clinical problems and anxiety.[3] One major component of this study is to examine the extent of problems caused by excessive internet use. Although the merits of the internet make it an ideal research tool, students experience significant academic problems has they surf irrelevant websites, engage in chat room gossip, converse with internet penpals, and play interactive games as the cost of productive study. Students had difficulty completing homework assignments, studying for exams or getting enough sleep to be alert for class the next morning due to such internet misuse. Often times they were unable to control their internet use which eventually resulted in poor grades academics probation and even expulsion from the university.[4] OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY 1. To assess the knowledge and attitude on internet usage among the students studying in selected colleges of Ambala, Haryana. 2. To assess the level of addiction among the students studying in selected colleges of Ambala, Haryana. 3. To assess the association between the knowledge and attitude on internet usage among the students studying in selected colleges of Ambala, Haryana.

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4. To assess the co relation between knowledge and attitude on internet usage among the students studying in selected colleges of Ambala, Haryana. Hypothesis All hypothesis were tested at 0.05 level of significance: H 1: There will be a significant relationship between knowledge scores and attitude scores on internet usage among adults. H 2: There is no significant relationship between attitude scores with selected demographic variables. H 3: There is no significant relationship between knowledge scores with selected demographic variables. Operational Definition 1. Knowledge: Knowledge refers to the ability of adults to answer the questions related to internet usage and its effects measured by Interview schedule and divided as very good (>75%), good (61-75%), average (50-60%) and below average (