Comparing Addictive Behavior on the Internet in the Czech Republic, Chile and Sweden
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| Year of publication | 2009 |
| Type | Chapter of a book |
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| Description | This study investigated addictive behavior on the Internet in the Czech Republic, Chile and Sweden. Data were collected via interviews with 592 respondents from Chile, 1381 respondents from the Czech Republic and 2057 respondents from Sweden. This study presents data on the prevalence of addictive behavior on the Internet in the Czech Republic, which was measured using a 10 item scale evaluating the dimensions of excessive Internet use (cognitive and behavioral salience, tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, conflicts, mood modification and problems with limiting time online). A comparison was (also) done of the prevalence of two dimensions of addictive behavior on the Internet (conflict and mood modification) among users in Chile, the Czech Republic and Sweden. The international comparison revealed that Internet users in the Czech Republic and Chile scored similar and higher than Swedes in dimensions of conflict and mood modification. Swedes also had a lower incidence of 'dangerous' online activities, such as visiting chat rooms or playing online games and greater tendency to carry out 'practical activities', such as using bank services. We speculate that the proneness to addictive behavior seems to be closely adherent to applications and patterns of Internet use in different countries. Regarding age, in all three countries, the youngest Internet users aged 16 to 19 years scored highest in both addictive behavior dimensions, while those aged 46 and older had the lowest score. Regarding the prevalence of addictive behavior on the Internet in the Czech Republic, results show that a total of 3.4% of Internet users could be described as having developed addictive behavior on the Internet and another 3.7% of Internet users are 'endangered' by addictive potential of the Internet. |
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