Relationship Between Internet Addiction and Feelings of Happiness at Dezful University of Medical Sciences

Currently the rate of Internet exploitations is increasing among college students and has become an important part of their life. Beside the benefits and advantages of Internet usage, abuse, extreme exploitation, and over dependence on the Internet can lead to complications. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between Internet addiction and feelings of happiness among Dezful Medical Sciences University students.
This research is a cross-sectional study, which was performed on 276 qualified Dezful Medical Sciences University students in 2014 with the method of available census. The tools utilized for data collection consisted of demographic questionnaire, Young Internet Addiction Standard criterion, and Happiness Oxford Standard criterion. The data were analyzed via the SPSS software.
In this study, 1.8% of female students was addicted to the Internet, which was 0.9% more compared to male students (P = 0.033). There were significant statistical correlations between the utilization of various websites and Internet addiction (P = 0.044). A significant statistical correlation was observed between daily usage and Internet addiction (P = 0.0001). The correlation coefficient between Internet addiction and student vitality, freshness, and joy was -0.085 (P = 0.185).
The results showed that daily use of the Internet by students, who have Internet addiction cause a decrease in feelings of happiness among students. It is recommended for educational programs to motivate students towards correct methods of Internet use.