Evaluation of the Relationship Between Adolescents’ Internet Addiction Risks and Prosocial Behaviors

Abstract

Introduction: Prosocial behavior is defined as behavior that is done voluntarily, aiming to benefit another person or group. Prosocial behavior appears in preschool, around age two, and increases in frequency and variety throughout life. While the internet can provide many positive prospects, exposure to negative behaviors on the internet may cause an individual to normalize them over time, which eventually could cause humans to lose certain senses. As a fast-growing addictive behavior, internet addiction (IA) can lead to poor social communication, loneliness, depression, etc. However, it should be remembered that many positive behaviors may be learned through the internet. The present study aimed to evaluate the relationship between IA and prosocial behavior in adolescents. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted with healthy adolescents aged 10 to 18. The participants were asked to answer a questionnaire including socio-demographic information and two scales; i) Young’s Internet Addiction Scale-Short Form (YIAS-SF); for evaluating IA, ii) Child Prosociality Scale (CPS); for evaluating the tendency to engage in prosocial behaviors. The scale scores were compared with each other through the socio-demographic features of the participants. Results: The study sample consisted of 488 adolescents (292 females, 196 males) with a mean age of 13.75. The parameter that affected the YIAS-SF score most was found to be the adolescent’s duration of daily internet use (p<0.01 and β=0.396), and it was determined that the parameter that affected the CPS score the most was school success (β=-0.166, p<0.001). A negative correlation was found between CPS and YIAS-SF (p=0,001, r=-0,269). Furthermore, there was a negative correlation between the adolescent’s CPS score and the mother’s daily internet use duration in comparison to the adolescent’s and the father’s (p=0.344 and r=-0.043). Conclusion: Since there is an inverse relationship between the risk of IA and prosocial behaviors, prosocial behaviors should be motivated in adolescents at high risk of IA. To promote prosocial behaviors in adolescents, mothers should be informed that the duration of their own daily internet time has a more significant effect on the adolescent’s prosocial behavior than the adolescent’s daily internet use time.