Internet Use and Happiness: A Replication and Extension

Abstract

This study is an extension of two previous studies, which explored the relationship between happiness and Internet use [1, 2]. An Internet Use Scale (IUS), developed in the initial study, was administered to college students along with the Flourishing Scale [3] and the Satisfaction with Life Scale [4]. I compared changes in the relationship between these measures, and their mean values, across the three samples; assessed the relationship between use factors and happiness over-all, combining data from all samples; and evaluated the relationship between individual usage scale items and happiness. Results indicated that those who reported spending less time on the Internet, and less time expressing negative emotions scored higher on measures of happiness. There was also some indication that those who spend time checking facts on the Internet are happier, but the effect was not as strong nor consistent.

Meeting Name

5th International Conference on HCI in Business, Government, and Organizations, HCIBGO 2018 (2018: Jul. 15-20, Las Vegas, NV)

Department(s)

Business and Information Technology

Keywords and Phrases

Artificial intelligence; Computer science; Computers; Internet; College students; Happiness; Internet use; Mean values; Negative emotions; Time checking; Students

International Standard Book Number (ISBN)

978-3-319-91715-3

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

0302-9743; 1611-3349

Document Type

Article - Conference proceedings

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 2018 Springer Verlag, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Jul 2018

Link to Full Text

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