title: Heavy internet use and correlations with interpersonal behaviours among university entrants in Hong Kong.
abstract: This paper summarizes the effects of Internet use on interpersonal behaviours among university students in Hong Kong. 2427 university matriculants in Hong Kong (mean age = 18.9, response rate 92.1%) completed an anonymous, self-administered questionnaire at the pre-enrollment health check-up. In the week preceding the survey, 99.4% of students had used the Internet with an average of 2.8 h/day; 14.9% reported heavy Internet use (> 4 h/day). Males (OR = 2.48) and Hong Kong-born students were more likely to be heavy users (OR = 1.67) while students with a religious affiliation (OR = 0.70), with a parent with tertiary education (OR = 0.68), or those in a romantic relationship (OR = 0.72) were less likely to be heavy users. Heavy users were less likely to socialize face-to-face (OR = 0.75) or talking to someone in person (OR = 0.61) in order to relieve feelings of stress, but were more likely to engage in online chatting (OR = 1.73) and online interactive games (OR = 2.43). They were also more likely to skip school (OR = 2.21), to be yelled at by family members (OR = 2.05) and to meet strangers from the Internet in person (OR = 3.31). There is strong evidence of the adverse effects of heavy internet use on interpersonal behaviours among Hong Kong university students, warranting further studies.
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, The Chinese University of Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Chun Hong
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Lau
authors.forename: Sian M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Griffiths
authors.forename: Julie Kwai Wing
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Chow
authors.forename: Ben Yuk Fai
authors.initials: BY
authors.lastname: Fong
authors.forename: Pauline Mei Yin Kan
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Yuen
authors.forename: Jean H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D006723:Hong Kong; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D012919:Social Behavior; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology*; D014495:Universities; D055815:Young Adult