Digital Media Usage and Prevalence of Internet Addiction among Undergraduate Students in South Africa
Oghenere Salubi, Ndakasharwa Muchaonyerwa, Fhulu Nekhwevha
International Journal of Web Applications, Vol. 10, No. 4, 2018.
DOI: 10.6025/ijwa/2018/10/4/127-136
Link: http://www.dline.info/ijwa/fulltext/v10n4/ijwav10n4_2.pdf
Abstract:
Internet and digital media for educational purposes have significantly improved knowledge creation. The
Internet has proven itself to be a valuable resource in the enhancement of knowledge production and dissemination. The
purpose of the study was to establish how excessive non-academic use of the Internet detrimentally affects undergraduate
studentsâ€™ daily lives. Using survey design, a total of 390 University undergraduate students comprising mainly adolescents/
young adults were selected using stratified random sampling at two South African universities, namely Fort Hare and Nelson
Mandela. Data were collected using the Modified Internet Addiction Test for Undergraduates (MIATU), a modification of
Internet Addiction Test (IAT) questionnaire. 282 (72.3%) use of the respondents indicated that they make use of the Internet
daily with 34.8% spending more than 10 hours. More than 60% have access to at least two electronic devices. Most of the
respondents stayed online longer than intended (x 2.88), slept less at night due to Internet use (x 2.63) and hence spent less
time studying owing to Internet surfing (x 2.27). Furthermore, the amount of time spent on the Internet had a significant
relationship with the level of influence the use of the Internet had on respondents (B = 0.250, t = 4.850, p < 0.05). The findings
are indications that the excessive amount of time spent on the Internet served as a distraction from school work, a situation
that put students at a disadvantage in as far as academic productivity was involved. These findings clearly suggest that the
uncontrolled use of new media is both a hazard and a potential danger to academic productivity.