Programs for Preventing Internet Addiction during Adolescence: A Systematic Review

Abstract

With the Internet having become an inevitable part of life, Internet addiction, being on the agenda, is viewed as a significant problem for adolescents and is frequently a subject of research. One observes that in addition to studies on the prevalence of Internet addiction during adolescence and its relation to different variables, efforts to prevent Internet addiction in adolescence in recent years have particularly started to gain importance. The number of studies on preventing Internet addiction has been rather limited compared to other types of studies, yet studies on preventing Internet addiction have great value because they allow for intervention before Internet usage becomes a problem. The aim of this research is to systematically review studies examining the effectiveness of programs that have been implemented to prevent Internet addiction during adolescence. For this purpose, the keywords of Internet addiction, Problematic Internet use, Adolescence, Prevention, Intervention, School-based, and Psycho-education have been searched in the databases of Science Direct, Pubmed, Cochrane, Wiley Online Library, and Ulakbim both in Turkish and English. The resulting 435 articles from the literature search have been evaluated according to the PRISMA guide; the selection criteria determined for this research and the five articles that met the required criteria have been included in the research. The selected articles have been examined in terms of research method, program applied, instrument used, and effectiveness of the applied program. The studies under investigation are seen to reveal positive results for preventing Internet addiction in adolescents.

Internet Risk Perception: Development and Validation of a Scale for Adults

“…We know that a better understanding of any issue in digital society research requires new, reliable, and valid instruments which provide more accurate information to differentiate normal from problematic use, as well as to distinguish the types of risks that require psychological attention from risks that can be addressed and prevented through digital safety education. This validated scale is therefore a useful tool for defining actions in the fields of education, family, and social life [ 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ], which can help to reduce the exposure of adults to risks that are becoming more frequent due to the increase in daily Internet use time. This usefulness is based on the need raised by Dönmez et al [ 29 ], who pointed out that society frequently demands that policymakers assess the risks of technologies and manage them appropriately in social integration processes.…”

“…The analysis of the studies showed a direct relationship between advances in technology and the risks of digital society due to technology use, as well as a lack of instruments to provide an accurate diagnosis of the situation. In response to this social concern, various initiatives and programs have emerged and been developed to educate and prevent risk in the general population [ 34 , 35 ]. One recent initiative in Spain is the project, “Development and Optimization of Intergenerational Educational Activities to Promote Responsible Internet Use” (“Desarrollo y optimización de acciones educativas intergeneracionales para la promoción del uso responsable de Internet” (EduACD)), performed during 2020–2022 to foster training actions for citizens.…”

Science Education Through Malaysian Animation Series

“…Emerging technologies have a huge impact on the way we live, learn and interact. Technology will be one of the main human needs in helping and improving the efficiency of human activities (Bagatarhan & Siyez, 2017).…”

The effectiveness of prevention programs for problematic Internet use in adolescents and youths: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…Fifteen intervention studies were included in the review, but due to the heterogeneity of their scope, content, outcome evaluation, and assessment tools used, the findings regarding the effectiveness of the programs remained inconclusive. The second review (Bağatarhan & Siyez, 2015) focused on the effectiveness of prevention programs for internet addiction during adolescence, drawing on multiple research databases in Turkish and English. Of the 435 articles found, only 5 met the inclusion criteria.…”