The Relationship Between Problematic Internet Usage And Loneliness Level of Prospective Teachers

THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PROBLEMATIC INTERNET USAGE AND LONELINESS LEVEL OF PROSPECTIVE TEACHERS

Levent DENİZ

Asst. Prof., Ataturk Education Faculty, Department of Educational Science

Marmara University, Istanbul, Turkey

ldeniz@marmara.edu.tr

Aylin TUTGUN

Lecturer (M.A), Education Faculty, Department of Computer and Instructional Technologies

Maltepe University, Istanbul, Turkey

aylintutgun@maltepe.edu.tr

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between problematic Internet usage and loneliness levels of prospective teachers. Two hundred twenty four prospective teachers were recruited from one teacher-training faculty in İstanbul, Turkey. Participants were asked to complete Problematic Internet Usage Scale and UCLA Loneliness Scale. The results indicated that positive correlations were found between problematic internet usage and loneliness levels of prospective teachers. As it was understood from the results, the higher problematic internet usage was correlated with higher level of loneliness. The results were discussed in the scope of teacher training programs.

INTRODUCTION

Internet usage, with the developments in technology, frequently appears in every field of life in Turkey, as in the whole world, for several purposes. While the internet gets widespread rapidly, it also becomes more accessible in many places such as houses, offices, schools and internet cafes. Studies indicate that vast majority of the students have the opportunity to easily access to computers and the internet (Ceyhan, Ceyhan & Gürcan, 2007; Deniz, 2001, 2007; Deniz & Coşkun, 2004). On the other hand, a number of studies were conducted on failure of controlling internet usage and the problems it caused and the studies show that concepts such as internet addiction, cyber addiction, internet dependence, problematic internet usage, pathological internet usage and excessive internet usage emerged. Young (1996), preferred to use the term “internet addiction” and he argued that internet addiction has similarities with alcohol addiction since it leads to academic, social and occupational damages. According to Caplan (2005), who considers problematic internet usage to be a multi-dimensional syndrome, people who are addicted to the internet prefer to perform face to face communication on the internet and they tend to show themselves off by getting into interaction on the internet. It is seen that social isolation and loneliness lead people to prefer social interaction via internet (Kraut et. al, 2002; Young, 2002). When the demographic structure of internet users is examined, it is seen that the internet usage is common among especially university students and it is used by these people for various purposes. The tendency of university students to have close relationships with people of the opposite sex makes the internet attractive for them. According to Erikson (1998), the basic developmental assignment of the university youth is to achieve having close relationships with their peers of the same or the opposite sex. Social isolation is inevitable for the university students who have poor social abilities. The internet is an appropriate platform for these students to show themselves off. Problematic internet usage in university years may lead to social and academic problems and loneliness/social isolation and also problems in their work and family lives in the following years. It is inevitable for these people to have problems especially in occupations such as teaching, which requires social communication abilities. A teacher who has occupational and social problems as a result of problematic internet usage is not expected to convey healthy knowledge to his students and act as a good role model for them. Therefore, this study aims at examining the relationship between problematic internet usage and loneliness level of prospective teachers in faculties of education.

METHOD

Participants

The sample of the study consists of 224 prospective teachers who are the students of seven different departments, including social studies and science departments, of Boğaziçi University Faculty of Education, Istanbul, Turkey. 46,4 %  (n=104) of the prospective teachers are freshmen and 53,6% (n=120) are seniors. %67,9 (n=152) of the participants are female and 32,1% (n=72) are male students.

Measurements

Data collection tools used in the study are; Problematic Internet Use Scale and UCLA Loneliness Scale.

Problematic Internet Use Scale. Problematic Internet Use Scale is a measurement tool used to determine the problematic internet usage by university students which is developed by Ceyhan, Ceyhan and Gürcan (2007). The scale consists of three factors: “negative consequences of the internet”, “social benefit/social comfort” and “excessive usage”. The studies to test reliability of the scale concluded that cronbach α internal consistency coefficient was 0.95 for the scale, 0.94 for negative consequences of the internet, 0.85 for social benefit/social comfort and 0.75 for excessive usage. In this study, cronbach α internal consistency coefficient is 0.93 for the scale, 0.91 for negative consequences of the internet, 0.85 for social benefit/social comfort  and 0.77 for excessive usage.

The Problematic Internet Usage Scale is a five-level Likert scale consisting of 33 items. The items are scored between “Completely appropriate” (5 points) and “Is not appropriate at all” (1 point). Getting a high score from the scale is considered as a sign indicating that internet usage by the students is getting more unhealthy, the internet effect their lives negatively and they may have pathological tendencies like addiction.

UCLA Loneliness Scale. UCLA Loneliness Scale, which is developed by Russel, Peplau and Cutrona (1980). in order to measure individuals’ general loneliness level, is a four-level Likert Scale consisting of 20 items; 10 items worded in a negative direction and 10 items worded in a positive direction. In each item of the scale, a situation which denotes a feeling or thought related to social relationships and the person is expected to tell how often he experiences that situation. Getting a high score from the scale indicates that the loneliness level is high. The scale was adapted to Turkish by Demir (1989). During the adaptation studies, cronbach α internal consistency coefficient of the scale was attained as .96. In this study, cronbach α internal consistency coefficient of the scale was attained as .91.

RESULTS

Arithmetical averages and standard deviations of the scores of prospective teachers in the Problematic Internet Usage Scale and the UCLA Loneliness Scale are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Means and standard deviations of Problematic Internet Usage Scale and the UCLA Loneliness Scale

	Mean	Sd.
Negative consequences of the Internet	28,01	10,93
Social benefit/social comfort	17,83	6,71
Excessive usage	18,04	5,37
Problematic Internet Usage	63,89	19,79
UCLA Loneliness Scale	31,95	9,89

As it can be seen in Table 1, the average of the scores of prospective teachers in the problematic internet usage scale (=63,89) and negative consequences of the internet (=28,01) and social benefit/social comfort (=17,83) sub-scales show that they have moderate problematic internet usage. When the average score in excessive usage scale (=18,04) is examined, it is clear that excessive usage is a little below the moderate level. The average of the scores of participants in the UCLA Loneliness Scale indicates that their loneliness level is moderate (=31,95).

Table 2. Correlations between Problematic Internet Usage Scale and the UCLA Loneliness Scale

Problematic Internet Usage Scale/sub scales	r	p
Negative consequences of the Internet	.465	.000
Social benefit/social comfort	.506	.000
Excessive usage	.204	.002
Problematic Internet Usage	.484	.000

When Table 2 is examined, according to the correlation between each sub-scales and loneliness, it is seen that there is a positive and meaningful relationship between loneliness and negative consequences of the internet (r=.465, p<.01), social benefit/social comfort (r=.506, p<.01) excessive usage (r=.204, p<.01). When the total scores achieved in the problematic internet usage scale and the UCLA loneliness scales are compared, it is determined that there is a positive and meaningful relationship between problematic internet usage and loneliness level. As a result, we can say that problematic internet usage by prospective teachers increases as loneliness level gets higher.

DISCUSSION

In this study, the relationship between problematic internet usage and loneliness level of prospective teachers is examined, taking the scores achieved in the problematic internet usage scale and its sub-scales (negative consequences of the internet, social benefit/social comfort, excessive usage) into consideration in accordance with the scores achieved in the UCLA loneliness scale. According to the results, it is determined that there are positive and meaningful relationships between loneliness and problematic internet usage (r=0.484, p<0,01), negative consequences of the internet (r=.465, p<.01); social benefit/social comfort (r=.506, p<.01) and excessive usage (r=.204, p<.01). This result indicates that as the loneliness level gets higher, internet usage for social benefit/social comfort and excessive internet usage increases. According to Young (2002), problematic internet users who allocate little time for real people prefer to spend their time alone using a computer. The reason is that, as Caplan (2005) mentioned in his research, people who have poor social interaction skills in real life prefer online social interaction to face-to-face communication and they tend to show themselves off getting into social interaction on the internet. According to Kraut et. al. (2002), isolation and loneliness lead individuals to prefer social interaction on the internet. On the other hand, in a study conducted by Kubey, Lavin and Barrows (2002), a group of participant students were identified to be addicted to the internet and according to the results of the study, it was concluded that these students are academically disadvantaged because of internet usage and they are “lonelier” compared to the other group. Another finding of the research is that students who are addicted to the internet and mention that they are academically disadvantaged prefer real time applications (MUDs and IRC/chat programs) on the internet. According to the researchers, these interactive applications form an important escape way for lonely people. We can say that this conclusion also supports the research findings related to social benefit/social comfort and excessive internet usage.

When the relationship between the total scores achieved in the problematic internet usage scale and the UCLA loneliness scale is examined, the presence of a positive and meaningful relationship between problematic internet usage and loneliness level (r=0.484, p<0,01) is identified and it is seen that problematic internet usage increases as the loneliness level gets higher. In fact, this result supports several researches in the literature on the relationship between problematic internet usage and loneliness (Young, 1996; Kraut et. al, 2002; Young, 2002; Kubey, Lavin & Barrows, 2002; Caplan, 2002, 2003).

On the other hand, it is mentioned in several studies on lack of face-to-face communication skills that, lack of skills leads to psycho-social problems such as depression, loneliness and social anxiety, which is mentioned by Davis (2001) for problematic internet usage we can say that, having occupational problems would be inevitable for prospective teachers, who should use their face-to-face communication skills in and out of the classroom. A teacher in this situation cannot be expected to effectively guide his/her students and manage learning environment.

According to the research it is clear that the tendency of prospective teachers to problematic internet usage because of their loneliness is an indicator of possible problems they may experience in the future. Therefore, studies can be conducted to measure the level of problematic internet usage by prospective teachers periodically. Studies on how to control problematic internet usage by prospective teachers can also be conducted. In order to prevent excessive internet usage by university students due to the lack of the ability to adapt to new social environments and establishing new friendships, the academic staff can support especially freshmen with group projects and cooperative study techniques which provide them new opportunities to socialize. On the other hand, qualitative and in depth studies can be conducted on the relationship between problematic internet usage and personal and psychological characteristics.

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Cite

·     Deniz, L. & Tutgun, A. (2010). The Relationship Between Problematic Internet Usage And Loneliness Level Of Prospective Teachers, Uluslar arası Eğitim Teknolojileri Kongresi (IETC) 2010, Volume III, Page  1563, Boğaziçi Üniversitesi, İstanbul.