Clipping of news on Brazilian Culture, Law and Citizenship
 


Health

Internet addiction is more severe in children, study finds

This article was translated by an automatic translation system, and was therefore not reviewed by people.


 

PAUL MARKS
New Scientist


Fields for rehabilitation in the Internet in China and shelter that keeps away from the ultrafast connection in South Korea are ways in which parents choose to release their children from a debilitating condition in recent times: Internet addiction.

Now researchers in Taiwan have identified a group of mental health conditions that can cause a child to have more chances of getting addicted to the net - giving parents a chance to do something before it's too late.

Unhealthy obsession over the Internet was found in 11% of respondents

A team led by psychologist Chih-Hung Ko, Medical University Hospital Kaohsiung, Taiwan, monitored the use of the Internet than 2,300 children 11 years of age during a period of two years. Every six months, the children filled forms detailing the time they spent online.

The unhealthy obsession over the Internet was found in 11% of respondents, reported the team in the journal Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

Early warning

In both sexes, they found depression, hyperactivity and attention deficit disorder, social phobia or feelings of hostility, which were more prevalent in children who develop Internet addiction than adolescents.

In girls, social phobia and depression were significantly stronger. "This means that gender differences should be taken into account as regards the development of strategies for prevention and intervention for Internet addiction," says Ko.

However, the authors acknowledge that there is disagreement about the prevalence of dependence on the Internet, citing conflicting studies that suggest a universe between 1.4% and 18% - just on the adolescent population.

The magazine's editors say it's worth staying tuned. "The intention in raising this concern is not to be alarmist, but rather to provide guidance to pediatricians for what should become a major public health problem."



Source: Folha Online


This article was translated by an automatic translation system, and was therefore not reviewed by people.

Important:
The JurisWay site does not interfere in the work provided by doctrine, why only reflect the opinions, ideas and concepts of their authors.


  Subjects list
 
  Copyright (c) 2006-2009. JurisWay - All rights reserved.