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Central Florida

Problematic Internet Use in Residence Halls

Abstract

dc:description.abstract

College students are at higher risk to develop problematic internet use (PIU) than the average person and that risk may negatively impact their college success. Since students with PIU are not violating policies, they are not being identified as having a problem through the student conduct process like other students with problems such as alcohol abuse. While research on PIU is still in its infancy, the research that has been conducted indicates that PIU is a growing problem with no agreed upon definition, diagnosis or treatment. The main purpose of this study was to determine the extent that PIU and PVP exists in residence halls on college campuses. The theoretical framework was the addiction syndrome theory (AST) and is the only current model that can be used to explain all addictions, including behavioral addictions which is the category of addiction the PIU falls under. The main measurement tool was the Young internet addiction test (IAT) which measures levels of online activity. The results of this study were inconclusive. There was a low correlation between online activity and academic performance as measured by academic probation. The weak relationship indicates that PIU may be an issue for college students and therefore may need to be considered when administrators are making policies. Whether the AST proves to be a valid conceptual framework for studying PIU and other addictions remains to be seen. The results here were inconclusive and therefore further research involving AST is needed before drawing any real conclusions.

Author and committee

dc:creator, dc:contributor.*
Author dc:creator
  • Quirk, Graham
Contributors dc:contributor
  • Cintron Delgado, Rosa

Subjects

dc:subject × 3

Rights

Language dc:language
English

Identifiers

dc:identifier.*
Identifier
CFE0005867
OAI identifier oai:identifier
oai:stars.library.ucf.edu:etd-1710

Chain of custody

source
Harvested from
Central Florida
Base URL
stars.library.ucf.edu/do/oai/
Last updated
2026-07-24
Source record
OAI-PMH GetRecord
citation

Quirk, Graham. Problematic Internet Use in Residence Halls. 2015. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/711