Internet Addiction and its Associated Factors Among Undergraduate Students of Institute of Medicine, Nepal
This cross-sectional study of 211 undergraduate students at Nepal's Institute of Medicine reveals that 50% suffer from internet addiction, with daily usage exceeding five hours identified as a significant risk factor increasing the likelihood of addiction by 2.4 times.
Original paper licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). This is an AI-generated explanation of a preprint that has not been peer-reviewed. It is not medical advice. Do not make health decisions based on this content. Read full disclaimer
The internet has become the invisible air we breathe, a vast network where we work, learn, connect with friends, and escape into stories. For young adults, this digital world is often their primary playground and classroom. But just as too much sunlight can burn the skin, too much time online can sometimes turn a helpful tool into a heavy burden. Scientists call this "internet addiction," a state where a person feels unable to control their urge to go online, even when it starts to hurt their sleep, their studies, or their relationships. It is not merely about liking the internet; it is about being trapped by it, spending hours scrolling or clicking while the real world fades into the background. Understanding who falls into this trap and why is crucial, especially for students who are navigating the high-pressure years of university life.
In Nepal, a country that has seen a rapid surge in digital connectivity, researchers wanted to see how this global phenomenon was playing out locally. They focused their attention on the undergraduate students at the Institute of Medicine in Kathmandu, a group known for intense academic demands. The team, led by Rima Lawaju and Sushan Man Shrestha, set out to answer two simple but vital questions: how many of these students were struggling with excessive internet use, and what specific habits or life circumstances were linked to that struggle? They did not look for a single cause, but rather examined a wide range of factors, from the students' age and family income to the specific reasons they logged on and how many hours they spent there each day.
To find the answers, the researchers reached out to 211 students across various medical and health science programs, including those studying to become doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and dentists. They asked the students to fill out a detailed survey that covered their daily lives and their relationship with the web. A key part of this survey was a standard test designed to measure internet addiction, which asks people to rate how often they experience certain feelings and behaviors, such as losing track of time online or feeling restless when they cannot access the internet. The students' responses were then carefully sorted to see who fell into the category of normal use, mild addiction, moderate addiction, or severe dependence.
The results painted a clear and somewhat concerning picture. Nearly half of the students surveyed showed signs of internet addiction. When the researchers broke this down, they found that about 36.5% of the students had a mild form of the issue, 12.3% were in the moderate range, and a small but significant group of 1.4% were severely dependent. This means that for one in two students, their internet use had crossed the line from a helpful tool into a problematic habit that could be affecting their well-being. The average age of the students was just over 21 years old, and the majority were male, but the addiction rates did not seem to care about gender, age, or where the student lived. Whether a student was single or in a relationship, from a wealthy family or a modest one, or studying to be a surgeon or a public health worker, their risk of addiction appeared to be roughly the same.
The study did, however, uncover one powerful factor that made a real difference: the sheer amount of time spent online. The researchers discovered that students who used the internet for more than five hours a day were significantly more likely to be addicted than those who used it for five hours or less. In fact, the data showed that those heavy users were more than twice as likely to struggle with addiction. Interestingly, the speed of their internet connection or the specific reason they were online—whether it was for social networking, watching movies, playing games, or studying—did not change the risk. It was simply the duration of the habit that mattered most.
This finding suggests that the problem is not necessarily about what students are doing on the internet, but rather how long they are staying there. The researchers noted that while other studies in different parts of the world have found links between addiction and things like gender or family background, this group of Nepalese students showed no such patterns. The only clear signal was the clock. The study acknowledges that because the data came from the students' own reports, there is a chance some numbers might be slightly off, and the sample size was limited to one university. Yet, the message remains steady: for these young scholars, the line between useful and harmful use is drawn by the hour. The researchers conclude that without intervention, this level of excessive use could lead to deeper mental health challenges, such as anxiety and trouble concentrating, urging a need for students to find a more balanced rhythm in their digital lives.
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