JOURNAL OF EDUCATION: RABINDRA BHARATI UNIVERSITY

ISSN : 0972-7175
EFFECTS OF DIGITAL DEPENDENCY ON XI STANDARD STUDENTS

Usha Nandhini R1, Dr.P.Senthamizh Pavai2

Faculty of Education, Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute, Chennai, India.
1
nandhini.sahana@gmail.com, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6141-5187
2
lakshanika29@gmail.com, https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0468-6188

Abstract: There is substantial evidence that social media addiction is a rising issue, especially among
XI Standard students. A self-made questionnaire was employed in the study, which was based on
Kimberly Young’s Internet Addiction Test (1996) as a reference. The “Statistical Package for Social
Science” will be used to examine the data. As a result, this study aimed to identify digital dependency
and its impact on mental health among XI standard students. The study article found the most used digital
platform was social media platform, and the amount of its dependency that causes mental health issues,
namely lack of sleep, depression, anxiety, and attention loss. The 20-item questionnaire was administered
to 50 students as part of the study. According to the data, Facebook is the most popular social media
network, followed by YouTube and Instagram. And we discovered that social media platforms have more
impacts on mental health, including loss of focus, absence of locus of control, depression, and anxiety in
that order. Overall, the study advises that students should restrict their time on social media and reduce
their reliance on them to avoid mental-related problems (depression, anxiety, and lack of attention).
Keywords: digital dependency, locus of control, mental health, depression, anxiety, loss of
concentration.

Introduction:
Following the rise of social media and its accompanying societal implications, various studies have been
conducted to determine if social media contributes positively or poorly to the world. In recent years,
academics in communication and psychology have focused on social network addiction and Internet
addiction. Except for the professionals, this phenomenon garnered public notice after the problem
expanded around the globe without generating worries among the general people. There is a lot of
misunderstanding about the difference between social networking sites and social media. Scholars have
defined social networks as more valuable than social media and it is helpful in banking, information
search, literature search, location search, etc. Social media is an extension of a phone or mobile and
interacting platform. Social networking sites are virtual communities where users can create individual
public profiles, interact with real-life friends, and meet other people based on shared interests. In contrast,
social media is made up of entire web-based tools with users as the main focus, allowing users to be
created and developed in terms of both ideological and technological content. Misuse, overuse, or abuse
of social media results in addiction to Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Once ego self-esteem boosts
their personality and it’s a chief reason for addiction. They fall prey to magical, cajoling, and appreciative
adjectives. Furthermore, the term "social media addiction" has been used to describe a person who spends
excessive time on social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and other
forms of social media that negatively impact their life.
Literature Review:
Indian Studies related to Internet Addiction:
Amrita Nayak et al (2021) aimed to determine the association of internet addiction with poor sleep quality
and autonomic function in medical students. The sample consisted of 148 medical students. They used
Young’s Internet Addiction Test and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index tool. The major findings of the

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ISSN : 0972-7175
present study show that internet overuse is associated with poor sleep quality in undergraduate medical
students.
Manoj Kumar Sharma et al (2017), attempted to assess the magnitude of technology addiction and its
relationship with psychosocial variables. The sample consisted of 2,755 individuals in the age group
between 18-65 years. The tool used was Young’s Internet Addiction Test, Mobile involvement
questionnaire, and General Health Questionnaire. Their major findings are the implications for raising
awareness about the addictive potential of technology and its impact on one’s lifestyle.
Foreign Studies related to Internet Addiction:
Arzu Sarıalioğlu et al (2021), attempted to study on the relationship between the levels of loneliness
adolescents feel during the pandemic, and their respective levels of internet addiction. The sample of the
study consists of 482 adolescents who volunteered to participate in the study. The tool used was Young’s
Internet Addiction Test (IAT). The findings concluded that adolescents’ internet addiction increases with
the increasing level of loneliness. Adolescents who reported feeling moderately lonely had a low level
of Internet addiction.
Fatma Ozlem Ozturk and Sultan Ayaz-Alkaya (2021), attempted to investigate the prevalence of internet
addiction and psychosocial problems and associated factors among adolescents during the COVID-19
pandemic. The population was composed of 9th and 10th-grade students. The sample consists of 1572
participants. The tool used was Pediatric Symptom Checklist and the Parent-Child Internet Addiction
Test. The major study emphasizes the need for the prevention of excessive internet use and psychosocial
problems during the COVID-19 pandemic among adolescents. Nurses should organize online training
for internet addiction and psychosocial problems for adolescents and their parents during quarantine.
Indian Studies related to Mental Health:
G.K. Sahanapriya et al (2021), conducted a cross-sectional study on internet addiction among adolescents
who have a parent with psychiatric illness and its relationship to the type and duration of their parent’s
illness. The sample consisted of 283 adolescents whose parents suffered from mental illness. The tool
used was Young’s Internet Addiction Test (IAT). Their major findings show that internet addiction scores
in adolescents have a significant relationship to the various types of illnesses and their parents’ illness
duration.
Sunita Devi and Prof. Swati Patra (2020), conducted a study to see the extent and intensity of internet
addiction and its relation to mental health and ways of coping among adolescent students. The sample
consisted of 346 students from 9th to 12th grade. The tool used was Young’s Internet Addiction Test
(IAT), Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS), and Ways of Coping Questionnaire (WAYS). Their
major findings state that adolescents use maladaptive strategies such as using the internet excessively to
deal with their depression, anxiety, and stress and hence getting addicted to the internet. Adolescents
who are using adaptive strategies can deal better with difficult situations in their life and deal effectively
with depression, anxiety, stress, and other mental health problems and hence depend less on using the
internet as a way to cope.
Foreign Studies related to Mental Health:
Rocco Servidio et al (2021), demonstrated that fear of COVID-19 was associated with an Internet
addiction disorder, and fear of COVID-19 mediated the relationship between anxiety and Internet
addiction disorder. Finally, controlling for covariates (age and gender), fear of COVID-19 was linked to
an Internet addiction disorder. The sample consists of 454 students. Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-
21 (DASS-21), Fear of COVID-19 scale, and Internet Related Experiences Questionnaire were used as
a tool. The findings demonstrate that fear of COVID-19 was associated with Internet addiction disorder
and mediated the relationship between anxiety but not depression and Internet addiction disorder.

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Chia-Yi Wu et al (2018), conducted a study to investigate the prevalence and psychosocial correlates of
internet addictive disorder. The sample consists of 2147 participants aged 15 and above. The tool used
was APA Internet Addiction Disorder Test. The findings reported a significant rate of Internet-addicted
youth. IA was negatively related to parental control.
Research Hypothesis:
1. There is no significant difference between the male and female levels of social media addiction.
2. There is no significant relationship between the variables namely: Internet Addiction and Mental
Health of XI standard students.
3. There are no significant differences among XI standard students in Internet Addiction owing to
variations in the personal variables namely: Gender, Locality, Subject Stream, Status of Academic
Results, Average time spent on Digital Platforms per day, favourite Social Media platform, and Time of
digital usage.
Instruments and Measurements:
The approach for data collecting was a survey questionnaire. The questionnaire was divided into
demographic information, digital usage patterns, and mental health. The self-made questionnaire was
employed in the study, which was based on Young’s (1996) Internet addiction Test (IAT). There was a
total of 20 items in the questionnaire. Respondents were divided into four groups based on their level of
addiction, as determined by the scale:
Scoring Procedure: The Social Media Addiction total score is the sum of the ratings given by the student’s
responses. Each item is rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 to 5, indicating SA- Strongly
Agree, A- Agree, UD-Undecided, D-Disagree, SD- Strongly Disagree. The maximum score is 100 points.
The higher the score, the higher the severity of your problem. Total scores that range from points below
in Table 1:
Table 1: Reliability Statistics
Scores Indication
0 to 19 No addiction
20 to 39 The normal level of Internet usage
40 to 69 Moderate level of Internet addiction
70 to 100 Severe dependence upon the Internet

Validity and Reliability:

A study (N = 50) was conducted to assess the flow and substance of the questions and to see whether the
respondents encountered any issues. Cronbach’s alpha values were used as an internal reliability test.
The pilot study data showed that all variables were significant and exceeded the minimum Cronbach’s
alpha value of 0.70, indicating the reliability of the variables’ reliability Table 2 confirms the internal
cohesiveness and stability of the variables with Cronbach’s alpha values of the respective variables,
where Cronbach’s alpha is for Social Media Addiction (α = 0.926).
Table 2: Reliability Statistics
Cronbach’s Alpha Internal Consistency
 ≥ 0.9 Excellent
0.9 >  ≥ 0.8 Good
0.8 >  ≥ 0.7 Acceptable
0.7 >  ≥ 0.6 Questionable
0.6 >  ≥ 0.5 Poor
0.5 >  Unacceptable

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Demographic Statistics of the Respondents:
Table 3: Demographic Statistics of the Respondents
S.No. Variable Sub-samples N = 50 Percentage
Male 25 50%
1 Gender
Female 25 50%
Rural 37 74%
2 Locality
Urban 13 26%
Science 25 50%
3 Subject Stream
Arts 25 50%
Above Average 14 28%
Status of Academic
4 Average 16 32%
Results
Below Average 20 40%
> 4 Hours 23 46%
3 - 4 Hours 15 30%
Average time spent on
5 2 – 3 Hours 8 16%
Digital Platforms per day
1 – 2 Hours 4 8%
< 1 Hour 0 0%
Facebook 24 48%
Your favourite Social
6 Instagram 19 38%
Media platform
Twitter 7 14%
Day 4 8%
7 Time of digital usage Night 37 74%
Day & Night 9 18%
The Prevalence of Internet Dependency:
This study used a self-made questionnaire framed based on Young’s Internet Addiction (1996) among
the respondents. The sum of the measurement of internet dependency was used to identify the level and
prevalence of internet dependency. The results in Table 3 show that almost 34% of the respondents were
highly addicted to social media, 52% were moderately addicted, 8% were slightly addicted and 6% are
at no addiction level.
Table 4: Prevalence of Internet Dependency
Level of Addictions Scores Frequency Percentage
No addiction 34–68 3 6%
Slightly addicted 69–102 4 8%
Moderately addicted 103–136 26 52%
Highly addicted 137–170 17 34%

Findings of the Study:

1. There is no significant difference between the male and female levels of social media addiction.
2. There is no significant relationship between the variables namely: Internet Addiction and Mental
Health of XI standard students.
3. There are no significant differences among XI standard students in Internet Addiction owing to
variations in the personal variables namely: Gender, Locality, Subject Stream, Status of Academic
Results, Average time spent on Digital Platforms per day, favourite Social Media platform, and Time of
digital usage.

Conclusion:

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The study was carried out to investigate the impact of social media on XI Standard students. According
to the survey, internet dependency impacts XI Standard students’ physical and mental health, namely
melancholy, anxiety, lack of sleep, decreased academic motivation, socialization, interest, focus, and loss
of attention. It was found that students who are into physical activities and sports are less prone to social
media addiction. We also found that they have no self-control since they are not under the feeling of
internet dependency in them.
Recommendations:
 Conduct counseling sessions for parents and students concerning internet dependency and its
adverse effects.
 Diverting themselves through various physical activities will help them eliminate the addiction.
 Spending quality time with family and friends.
 In case of students with single parents or living under guardian support must have proper self-
control and engage in meditation, yoga, sports, household activities, reading, art activities, or some
productive work that they prefer to do other than digital.
 A time limit can be set for students using Wi-Fi or turned off at some standard time.
 Students should stop self-building and build castles in the air through postings on Social Media
pages.
 They should build their profession. Academics and achieve greater heights. Anything in excess
is poisonous.

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