Psychopathological Symptoms and Loneliness in Adult Internet Users: A Contemporary Public Health Concern

Abstract

There are different concepts that translate abusive Internet use. Almost all these concepts converge on excessive time spent online, which can trigger the emergence of problematic situations. Most of the studies reported in the literature, both nationally and internationally, focused on a young population and found negative consequences of this Internet misuse. The objective of this study consists of associating the time spent using the Internet—in years, times per week, and hours per day—with psychopathological symptoms, as well as assessing the perception of loneliness, in an adult Portuguese population. A quantitative approach, based on a survey application, was conducted in a convenience sample composed by 418 participants (64.4% female), with a mean age of 29.9 years old (SD = 9.26), ranging from 18 to 73 years. The results suggest that maladaptive patterns of Internet use found in young people seem to be replicated in the adult population. A relationship between time spent on the Internet and psychopathological symptoms, and an association between loneliness and the number of hours spent on the Internet, were also identified. In an individualized and disconnected offline world, Internet impact in individuals’ well-being results must be highlighted, since it should be understood as a public health issue. The novelty of this study lies in the target population: Portuguese Internet users over 18 years of age, for which there is no specific study on the subject, thus emphasizing the transverse nature of the problem.

The Relationships between Gender, Life Satisfaction, Loneliness and Problematic Internet Use during COVID-19: Does the Lockdown Matter?

“…Research exploring psychosocial factors associated with PIU have consistently identified loneliness, and more recently, low life satisfaction to be meaningful predictors [12,[24][25][26][27][28]. These findings are relevant to the lockdown context where many individuals reported that feeling lonely during lockdown worsened their wellbeing [9], so perhaps they may look for connection using the only methods available to them such as social media and the internet [29].…”

Effect of COVID-19 on Internet Usage of People with Disabilities: A Secondary Data Analysis

“…Internet use has both positive and negative impacts. Although the Internet provides opportunities for social interaction and belonging to individuals in isolation [6], at the same time, it can lead to an increase in negative emotions, such as anger, and serious social problems, such as addiction [7,8].…”