THE IMPACT OF THE INTERNET ON CHILDREN’S DAILY LIVES: PHYSICAL

135 Pages·2003·0.29 MB·English

THE IMPACT OF THE INTERNET ON CHILDREN’S DAILY LIVES: PHYSICAL,
SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING
by
YEORA KIM
(Under the Direction of Joseph. R. Dominick)
ABSTRACT
This study investigated the children’s Internet use behavior and how the Internet
th th
usage changes children’s daily lives. 297 children in 4 through 9 grades participated in
survey. Particularly, this study examined how children allocated their time to different
media and daily activities and the relationship between children’s Internet use and level
of physical activities, social involvement and relationship, and loneliness. This study
found no displacement effect of the Internet on children’s daily activities. Rather, it was
found that children who spend more time on the Internet were more likely to spend more
time with other media, more time on some kind of physical activities, and were more
socially involved. The Internet provided a place for communication and social
relationships for children. Net-generation children surrounded by media were not
necessarily giving up other activities that were also important for their intellectual,
physical, social and psychological development.
INDEX WORDS: Children, Internet, Daily activities, Physical activities, Time,
Displacement effect, Social involvement and relationship,
Loneliness, Body Mass Index
THE IMPACT OF THE INTERNET ON CHILDREN’S DAILY LIVES: PHYSICAL,
SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING
by
YEORA KIM
B.A., The Sook-Myung Women’s University, Korea, 1995
M.P.S., The Chung-Ang University, Korea, 1997
A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial
Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
ATHENS, GEORGIA
2003
© 2003
Yeora Kim
All Rights Reserved
THE IMPACT OF THE INTERNET ON CHILDREN’S DAILY LIVES: PHYSICAL,
SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING
by
YEORA KIM
Major Professor: Joseph R. Dominick
Committee: Alison Alexander
Andy Kavoori
Spencer F. Tinkham
W. Keith Campbell
Electronic Version Approved:
Maureen Grasso
Dean of the Graduate School
The University of Georgia
May 2003
To Hyung-Jin and Grace (HyeJoon),
whose tremendous love, support, and patience
make this possible.
To my parents and parents-in-law,
who has always encouraged me to complete
my academic goal.
To Sera, JiWook, ChungWan, and SungHyun,
who has always made me laugh.
iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This study would not have been possible without the enduring love and support
from many people. First of all, I would like to dedicate my dissertation to my God who
has always helped me throughout my life.
I would like to express my deepest thanks to my major professor, Dr. Dominick,
who has encouraged me to complete this dissertation. He is a mentor of my academic life.
He not only provides me intellectual advice but also shows me how to approach the
knowledge. I also appreciate Dr. Dominick and his wife for the generous love for my
family. I have been honored to work with Dr. Dominick.
I am grateful for Dr. Alexander for her support and encouragement. She has
constantly showed me support and given me her time to listen to me. I was fortunate to
work with her. The committee members, Dr. Kavoori, Dr. Tinkham, and Dr. Campbell
have shared their knowledge and advice with me. I am thankful for their valuable advice
and support.
This study was made possible thanks to my family. Without enduring love and
support from my parents-in-law, Yong-Gil Woo, and Gui-In Ro, I would have given up
my study. I am deeply grateful for my parents, Young-Woon Kim and Hyo-Whan Lee,
who has encouraged me not to give up and inspired me throughout my life.
Finally, I would like to thank to my wonderful husband and friend Hyung-Jin. He
is the most incredible friend and helper of my life. His tremendous love and sacrifice
made this possible. I am deeply grateful for his support. My daughter, Grace (HyeJoon),
v
who has always made me laugh, is my source of inspiration. Thanks to Hyung-Jin and
Grace for always being there for me throughout this journey.
vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................v
CHAPTER
1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................1
Justification....................................................................................................1
Purpose of the Study......................................................................................3
Chapter Organization.....................................................................................7
2 LITERATURE REVIEW...................................................................................8
Internet as a New Medium.............................................................................8
Internet and Children...................................................................................11
Children’s Time Use....................................................................................15
Displacement Effect.....................................................................................21
3 METHOD.........................................................................................................47
Sample .........................................................................................................47
Measurements ..............................................................................................48
4 RESULTS.........................................................................................................61
Sample Description......................................................................................61
Children’s Media Activity...........................................................................61
Children’s Non-Media Activity...................................................................66
Displacement of Existing Media .................................................................67
vii
Displacement of Non-Media Activities .......................................................68
Displacement of Physical Activity..............................................................69
Displacement of Social Involvement and Social Relations .........................71
Internet Use and Loneliness.........................................................................73
5 DISCUSSION..................................................................................................97
REFERENCES.................................................................................................................106
APPENDICES
A CORRELATION BETWEEN THE VARIABLES ......................................114
B CORRELATION BETWEEN THE VARIABLES OF TYPES OF
INTERNET USE.......................................................................................115
C CORRELATION BETWEEN THE VARIABLES ......................................116
D QUESTIONNAIRE........................................................................................117
viii
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Justification
Studies about the Internet started from investigating who had Internet access.
Researchers then moved to investigate actual Internet use, including how much time
people spend on the Internet and what they are doing. This study starts with the
assumption that most children now have Internet access either at school, library, or at
home. Thus, it examines children’s actual Internet usage and how the Internet usage
changes children’s daily lives in terms of physical, social, and psychological health by
investigating the level of physical activities, social interaction and relationship, and
loneliness. The study also examines how children allocate their time to different media
and daily activities.
The Internet is a new and innovative medium that can completely change the lives
of people much as television did in the 1950s and 1960s. The Internet changes people’s
lives in terms of reaching, disseminating, creating, and evaluating a huge amount of
information easily and quickly, communicating with many different kinds of people
separated by space and time, and reallocating time for their daily activities. Through
various types of Internet uses, such as, e-mail, newsgroups, and chatting, the way people
communicate is changed. Since the Internet has changed our lives in a revolutionary way,
we cannot help but study and investigate the Internet as to what influence it has on us.
1