Internet Addiction and Happiness Among Medical Sciences Students in Southeastern Iran

Abstract

Background: Several factors are responsible for overuse of the internet among young adults. The practice can lead to internet addiction (IA). In addition, users’ happiness may be an important factor related to IA, and should be assessed. Objectives: The present study aims to estimate the prevalence of internet addiction (IA) and its relationship to happiness among students enrolled at the Zahedan University of Medical Sciences (ZUMS) in southeastern Iran. Patients and Methods: This cross-sectional study was carried out on 380 medical students at ZUMS in 2015. The subjects were selected using the stratified random sampling method. The data were collected using Yang Standard Internet Addiction and Oxford Happiness questionnaires, and were analyzed in Stata.12 software using bivariate and multiple logistic regression with the Hosmer-Lemshow method. Results: The prevalences of IA among males and females were 33.8% (95% CI: 26.1 - 41.5) and 20% (95% CI: 14.9 - 25.1), respectively. The results of logistic regression analyses revealed that gender (OR = 1.98, 95% CI: 1.48 - 2.48), average grades (OR = 0.87, 95% CI: 0.81 - 0.99), and happiness scores (OR = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.75 - 0.98) were statistically significantly associated with IA. However, IA was not associated with subjects’ age, semester of study, residential area, or school of education (P > 0.05). Conclusions: The prevalence of IA among medical students in southeast Iran was high and affected by happiness. Increasing happiness with the provision of various programs may prevent IA problems among students and may improve their educational situation.