11 Negative Effects Of Internet On Students And Teenagers

negative effects of internet on students

The early years of the 21st century have witnessed an explosion in the Internet usage. The popularity of this global system of interconnected network keeps growing nonstop from the day it appeared in human life. Obviously, with the universal access to information and an interactive mechanism to communicate that Internet offers, it is no hard to understand why people all around the world get addicted to it. E- Commerce, E- Business and E- Marketing are phenomena that appear as the result of the Internet invasion. There is definitely no doubt about the benefits provided by the use of Internet in daily life. According to the study by Stephen Siwek businesses that are related directly to the Internet created approximate $966 billion in 2024 for the US economy. However, there is a rising concern developing along with the growth of this global system. It is about the negative effects of Internet. The lack of control over information sources, security leaking or internet addiction is mentioned more frequently than ever.  Never in the past did the negative effects of Internet receive as much as attention in comparison to this century. So, what exactly are these problems and how do they affect our society. Together with VKool.com, let figure out the answers hidden in this article.

Hidden Dangers of Internet for Youth / Meaning and Benefits of Internet – 5 Tips 

11 Negative Effects Of Internet On Students And Teenagers

I. Lack Of Face To Face Communication

It sounds quite ironic when the lack of face to face communication is mentioned as one of the negative effects of Internet because the Internet is supposed to bring people closer. But the fact is that somehow many people find it easier to communicate through the Internet instead of the traditional direct way. They prefer to discuss over Messenger, Viber or other apps available on the Internet. The idea of taking face to face is becoming a tough decision. Research issued in the International Journal of Organizational Design and Engineering has stated that the face to face communication in teamwork helps people build mutual trust, creative and provide a higher result. To know more information, please click at: How 20 Interpersonal communication skills, activities, and strategies

When teenagers and students and tend to choose Internet communication and avoid talking directly, their personal relationships with friends and family will be affected. According to The Washington Post survey and its result, about 6% of participants replied that their relationships got hurt as a consequence of excessive Internet use. It is believed that some people who prefer online chatting because it somehow separates them from the real world.

Read more: Conversation confidence review – is Eduard Ezeanu’s book useful?

II. Lack Of Creativity

The lack of creativity in teenagers and students is also another one of negative effects of Internet rooting from its benefits. One significant feature of Internet is the unlimited sources of information. This feature benefits users by quick access to needed info at ease. However, when everything is available, there is no need for creativity. Students now don’t have to pay much effort on their assignment or project because they only need a few minutes to get all information they need from the Internet then copy paste into their work. This problem is a warning for the increase in plagiarism, leading to the lack of creativity. When this habit happens several times, these young people will be dependent on the Internet to finish their studying. The same situation happens to not only students but also to users at any age. Things get easier in a way that it becomes a hindrance for learning and creativity.

III. Cyber Bullying

Cyber bullying is basically a term to describe the bullying using the Internet. This disadvantage can be considered as one of the evilest negative effects of Internet [1]. It is never easier for haters to give ugly words toward a person. Celebrities or some kinds of people in protected class are often the victims of cyber bullying. This type of harassment is safer and easier than physical bullying because there is hardly any regulation or law to control the problems. Victims of cyber bullying may feel insulted or embarrassed because of the wicked comments or opinions. The negative effects will be worse on teenagers, especially on those who are in puberty with all the vulnerability and sensitiveness. There is a positive relationship proved between cyber bullying and suicidal attempts by victims. Students are considered to be most bullied on the Internet. A couple of criticism from teachers or cheating from groups of friends can drive a student insane and finally to suicide. Therefore, it is important to be aware of these negative effects of Internet in advance. If you get troubles with bullying, click at How to deal with bullies to find more information.

IV. Waste Of Time

negative effects of internet - waste of time

It will be a mistake to forget the waste of time when it comes to the negative effects of Internet. The Washington Post revealed that 9% attempted to hide “nonessential Internet use.” In addition, Stanford University also conducted a study showing that 12.4 percent of participants stayed online for a longer time than they intended very often [2]. It is obvious that if you spend too much time on the Internet, you will have to cut down on time for other activities. As an infinite storage of entertainment, the Internet is somehow similar to the black hole that leaves no way to get out. A lot of students and teenagers spend most of their time just on watching films, surfing Facebook and playing games instead of learning or doing other meaningful activities. If the original purpose of Internet was to help students and teenagers work more efficiently, it now makes them do no work at all. Especially for students, the explorations and advancement of Internet turn it into a promising distraction. As the result, their academic result goes down gradually while the electronic bill payment keeps increasing.

Read more: 26 Effects Of Social Media On Youth, Society And Business

V. Abandonment Of Family

The excessive using of anything always creates side effects. The Internet is not an exception. When students and teenagers use of Internet is too much, the abandonment of family will occur as one of the negative effects of Internet. The tragedy of a couple in Korea will be the most appropriate example for this effect because they were so busy with their virtual baby and forget about their real baby. Finally, this poor baby died of hunger and of the abandonment of his parents. When people spend most of their time on surfing the Internet, they become insensitive to the real life and people around them, including members of their own family.  Obviously, the original purpose of parents when they equip their children with the Internet is to open a door to the new world, not to close themselves in a fiction planet without family. For many students, the Internet is the only friend they have. The time for family, for parents is replaced by hours of Internet browsing. They ignore the family and hesitate to talk or interact with other members. Read more: How to have a happy family

VI. Privacy Disrupted

Occurring due to the free information flow of Internet, privacy threat is one of the negative effects of Internet that you should know about [3]. Teenagers exchange their picture, private information or personal chat every day in social networking. Many students even update their ID number, their class number and other information relating to personal security. They are not fully aware of the risk privacy threat that their information can be easily approached by strangers and be misused. Their privacy stands a risk of being disrupted and hindered.  Therefore, keep in mind that not everything is exchangeable on the Internet. For your best benefits and to stay away of these negative effects of Internet, be careful with all the private information you upload and make sure who is available to reach your information.

Learn also: Time saving tips

VII. Insomnia

For anyone does not know what insomnia is, it is a sleeping disorder that happens when people are not able to rest or sleep. And the powerful global system, the Internet, somehow is one of the reasons for insomnia. It cannot be denied that teenagers and students are sticking with the Internet all day. They take advantages of any time possible to browsing the Internet, even the sleeping time. Just after several days, they stay up late to check their Facebook or Instagram, it will become a habit and believe me, it is not easy to get rid of it. Moreover, the green light from the computer screen or other types of electronic items can keep you away from your sleep. If you concern about insomnia, click at How to prevent insomnia naturally – 28 tips & advice to get more information.

We all know that staying up late is not good for our health. When the body cannot have enough time to rest, many health problems will appear. You can find the negative impacts on health in the article: Effects of lack of sleep.

For the students and teenagers, who are at the age of development, insomnia will not only affect their mental health but also their physical growth. The eye strain will happen after a long time looking at the screen. Therefore, save yourself by turning off your Internet early tonight and build up a good habit of sleeping early to stay away of many health problems. Now, you can click at: List of mental health disorders in children parents should know to see more about the health problems on children, especially on mental side.

VIII. Physical Inactivity

When it comes to the negative effects of Internet, we cannot ignore physical inactivity. As we all learn it in school, a full education includes mental and physical development. It is the reason why there is break- time between classes so that students can relax and work out their body. The Internet only supports for the mental side. There is no exercise for teenagers and students in this global system. When people use the Internet a lot, they will lack time for physical activities such as playing sports. Moreover, because the Internet makes everything available, it also reduces the need for these activities. Students can submit their projects without going to schools. Teenagers can talk to their friends without getting out of their bed. The more convenient the Internet is, the fewer physical activities for students and teenagers. This tendency will affect a lot on the development of these young people. They are advised to go outside, do regular exercise and be more active at these ages. The emphasis on the Internet use should be reduced or, sooner or later, these negative effects of Internet will lead to mental health problems in students and teenagers. If you want to know more information about mental health, click at Exercise and mental health

IX. Internet Addiction

negative effects of internet - internet addiction

 

The Internet addiction is not less dangerous than other types of addiction. From the day that Internet explosion occurred, this disadvantage has appeared and spread throughout the world without notice. The feature of people having trouble with Internet addiction is that they seem to marry their own phones or computers. Anytime you see them, their eyes are on the screen. For students and teenagers, online games or these social networking websites are a big attraction. Learn more: How to stop gambling addiction forever

13.7 percent of people found it difficult to get away from the Internet for about a number of days at a time, based on the statistic given by Stanford University. An interesting fact is that males are more likely to addict to the Internet, based on a research from the University of Lowa [4]. Not only being lured by these above factors, many students and teenagers come to the Internet as a way to hide from the real world. The pressure from parents’ expectation, from studying or even bullying scares them severely. They feel more comfortable and safer when living in a fiction world created on the Internet. The dangerous problem of internet addiction is not only about their life tendency but also their health. A study published on March 12, 2024, has shown a positive relationship between the use of the Internet and depression [5]. Specifically, people who are addicted to the Internet will be more likely to get depressed than normal people. According to Hilarie Cash, an American psychotherapist recommended that 8-10% of American teenagers get addicted to the Internet. This number means that approximately 2 million teenagers become depend on this system around the United States alone. It is a true alarm for people to recognize these negative effects of Internet on students and teenagers. If you want to know more about depression, a negative impact of Internet, click at Consequences of Depression

X. Cheating

It is true to say that the Internet creates a number of troubles for teachers. The cheating becomes much easier for students with a source of knowledge from all over the world. They can find the answer for all the homework without a lot of effort, resulting in an increase cheating, academic fraud, and plagiarism. Educators have realized this problem and tried to deal with it by developing websites that can check essay and research papers against published content as an effort to detect pilfered material. However, the cheating can still happen in several ways that are out of the control. Therefore, changing the cheating culture among students and raising their awareness will be more practical to prevent these negative effects of Internet.

XI. Moral Corruption

Moral corruption is the last one in the negative effects of Internet list. Besides many useful and effective things the Internet provides, there is something that can result in moral corruption in teenagers or students, for example, black websites. For young people at these ages, their personality, as well as moral concepts, is just developing. The impropriate information absorbed can lead to the wrong mental development. Therefore, it is necessary for adults such as parents and teachers to take the control over what kind of information is available for these teenagers.

Considered as one of the most life-changing innovations, the Internet has proved its position in every field of life, from industry to education or medication. However, the increasing negative effects of Internet raise a question about the use of Internet in daily life. As you can see, most of the negative effects of Internet are actually related to its benefits. The decisive factor between the pros and cons of Internet is about balancing between the fiction and real world. To do that, it is important to understand the nature of Internet. It was created as a supportive system for our life, not a replacement. What happening on your Facebook may not true in the real life. Your best online friend you talk every day may not the same as your expectation. But things going on in your family are real. Your relationships are more important than those people you have never met on the Internet. Therefore, to stay away from the negative effects of Internet, it is important to keep yourself from getting dependent on this network. Take up some interesting habit in the real life such as reading book and you will not have time to fall a prey for it. If you have any more ideas about the negative effects of Internet, please share with us. For more information, please visit the main page Lifestyle

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