Compulsive computer and internet use in Belgium among adolescents

"Adolescents use the internet for three main purposes: communication, information and entertainment (Streaming movies and music, chatting and sending e-mails and to look for information). Erotic websites and online shopping are less popular but are nevertheless a substantial part for 28.7% and 20% of the users. 57.6% plays both offline and online games, in which the latter takes up 1 hour and 8 minutes on a school day and 2 hours and 41 minutes on a non-school day. 88.2% of the secondary school children has a profile on at least one SNS. Facebook is by far the most popular and this takes up 1 hour and 15 minutes on a weekday and 2 hours and 16 minutes on a weekend day or a holiday. In the sample, 9.5% compulsive internet users was found according to the Compulsive Internet Use Scale (CIUS). Compulsive users spent significantly more time online on a weekly basis compared to the non-compulsive users: 22 hours and 31 minutes (3 hours and 13 minutes per day) versus 11 hours and 3 minutes. 40.4% of the compulsive users is in technical education and was found less in general education, parents of compulsive users are less often married, more often divorced and more often living with a single parent. There was a correlation found between rules about the content and the average CIUS score. The more strict parents are about what their children do online, the lower the score on the scale measuring compulsive internet use and vice versa. Compulsive users also experience more feelings of loneliness, depressive feelings, self-esteem and perceived control over your life compared to their non-compulsive counterparts. When it comes to compulisve gaming, gender and attitude towards school are the most important predictors (boys and a more negative attitude are significant predictors for higher chances to compulsive gaming)." (Klein et al., 2014, chapter 4)