CYBERPSYCHOLOGY & BEHAVIOR

Volume 11, Number 6, 2008

Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.
DOI: 10.1089/cpb.2007.0255

Rapid Communication

Loneliness, Depression, and Computer Self-Efficacy

as Predictors of Problematic Internet Use
A. Aykut Ceyhan, Ph.D.1 and Esra Ceyhan, Ph.D.2

Abstract

This study investigated whether university students levels of loneliness, depression, and computer self-efficacy were significant predictors of their problematic Internet use levels. The study was carried out with 559
Turkish university students. The research data were analyzed by multiple regression analysis. The findings indicated that loneliness, depression, and computer self-efficacy were significant predictors of problematic Internet use. Loneliness was found as the most important predictive variable. Depression predicted problematic
Internet use on the second rank, and computer self-efficacy on the third rank.

Introduction

Methods

Participants

HE INTERNET IS

an inevitable communication tool that has

contributed to peoples quality of life significantly.
Therefore, it has become an important part of daily life. This
change toward Internet-based life can be taken into consideration both optimistically and pessimistically.1 In recent
years, researchers have focused on whether the Internet is
detrimental to the psychology of individuals or whether it
increases their well-being.2 Therefore, understanding Internethuman interaction is of great significance for explaining
problematic Internet-use behavior. When studies in related
literature are examined, most reveal that various psychosocial problems or difficulties are associated with Internet use.
Because university students are among those who use the
Internet widely, they are more likely to be exposed to the
negative effects of the Internet. In Turkey, there is a great
need for studies on problematic Internet use (PIU) of university students because the number of studies about inappropriate use of the Internet is limited. This study investigates the nature of the relationship between certain
characteristics of Turkish college students and PIU behavior. For this goal, the following question was investigated:
Are college students levels of loneliness, depression, and computer self-efficacy significant predictors of their level of problematic Internet use?

The participants were 559 university students attending

Anadolu University in Turkey. The data were obtained from
322 (57.6%) female and 234 (41.9%) male students, and 3 individuals who did not state their gender (0.5%).
Instruments
Problematic Internet Use Scale (PIUS). The PIUS is a Likert-type scale developed with Turkish students by Ceyhan,
Ceyhan and Gurcan. According to the scale, higher scores
mean that individuals report unhealthy use of the Internet.3
UCLA Loneliness Scale. The UCLA Loneliness Scale is a
self-report scale consisting of 20 items measuring individuals overall feelings of loneliness.4
Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). The purpose of the BDI
was not to end up with a diagnosis of depression but to determine the degree of depression symptoms.
Computer Self-Efficacy Scale (CSES). CSES was a Likerttype scale developed by Grcan to determine university students levels of computer self-efficacy.5

1Department
2Center

of Educational Sciences, Anadolu University, Eskisehir, Turkey.

of Psychological Counseling and Guidance, Anadolu University, Eskisehir, Turkey.

699

700

CEYHAN AND CEYHAN

TABLE 1.
Model
1
2
3

RESULTS

OF

MULTIPLE REGRESSION ANALYSIS RELATED

Variable

Standard
error

Constant
Loneliness
Constant
Loneliness
Depression
Constant
Loneliness
Depression
Computer
self-efficacy

24.05
0.99
26.16
0.77
0.58
10.43
0.69
0.64
0.24

3.24
0.08
3.20
0.09
0.12
4.61
0.09
0.12
0.05


0.47
0.36
0.21
0.32
0.24
0.18

TO THE

PREDICTION

OF

PROBLEMATIC INTERNET USE LEVEL

Paired r

Partial r

Adj. R2

Increase
in R2

Standard
errorR

0.47

0.47

0.47

0.218

0.218

18.83

147.90**

0.47
0.40

0.34
0.23

0.50

0.251

0.033

18.43

89.32**

0.47
0.40
0.22

0.31
0.23
0.20

0.53

0.279

0.028

18.07

69.15**

7.42**
12.16**
8.17**
8.28**
4.92**
2.26*
7.45**
5.51**
4.67**

*p  0.05; **p  0.001; df  528.

Procedure and data analysis

Five hundred fifty-nine students participated in the study.
However, 30 students were excluded from the study because
12 of them did not respond to the instruments as required
and 18 were found to produce extreme scores. Therefore, the
data obtained from 529 students were statistically analyzed.
The analysis of the data was carried out by stepwise method
of linear multiple-regression analysis.
Results
Prior to linear multiple regression analysis, the appropriateness of the data was examined. Scatterplots proved the
existence of a linear relationship. Moreover, histogram and
normal PP plot and partial regression graphics revealed that
there were no significant deviations from the normal distribution. Furthermore, Mahalanobis distance values were calculated (for 2  11.34, p  0.01). As a result, the data obtained from 18 participants were extreme values and were
not included in data analysis. It was also found that there
was not a multicolinearity relationship among the predictive
variables. Depending on these results, the data were analyzed through multiple regression analysis, and the results
found are presented in Table 1.
As can be seen in Table 1, loneliness, depression, and computer self-efficacy were all important predictors of PIU behavior. It is also seen that there was a low level of relationship
between them. These three variables explained 27.9% of total
variance related to PIU. The variable of loneliness explained
21.8% of total variance alone and appeared to be the most important predictor as a variable. Depression, the second important variable that predicted PIU behavior, explained only 3.3%
of total variance alone. The third variable, computer self-efficacy, explained only 2.8% of the total variance alone.
Discussion
The findings revealed that the variables of loneliness, depression, and computer self-efficacy were important predictors of PIU, and loneliness was the most important predictor. Based on this result, it can be stated that individuals
experiencing the feeling of loneliness tend to have more PIU
behavior. Moreover, as the levels of depression and of computer self-efficacy increase, the PIU behaviors of individuals
do as well. These findings of the present study support the

cognitive-behavioral model of PIU.6 Also, the research findings are consistent with those of other studies in literature,
which found a relationship between depression1,79 and
loneliness711 and excessive/pathological/problematic or Internet dependency.
The research findings supports the view that the previously-existing psychopathologies of individuals could provoke the development of problematic behaviors and cognitions with their Internet experiences.7 However, it is difficult
to determine whether loneliness is a symptom of excessive
Internet use or whether heavy Internet use is a symptom of
loneliness.12 The present study found that loneliness was the
most important predictor as a variable. This finding is consistent with the findings that loneliness and self-esteem had
the strongest relationship with the negative results of Internet use.7 It was also revealed in this study that depression
was less predictive of problematic Internet use than loneliness. This finding is also consistent with the finding that
while loneliness played an important role in the development of problematic Internet use, depression had little influence on the process.13
In conclusion, this study indicates that the findings obtained from a study group of Turkish university students are
consistent with those found in the related literature. The current study has several limitations. The study is inadequate
for examining causal relationships, and includes the students
of only one university and the data on the basis of self-report scales.
Acknowledgments
This research is a part of project titled Problematic Internet Usage: A Multidimensional Investigation on Anadolu
University Students supported by Anadolu University Scientific Research Fund. Also, this study was presented at the
Ninth National Congress of Counseling Psychology and
Guidance, Izmir, Turkey 2007.
Disclosure Statement
The authors have no conflict of interest.
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Address reprint requests to:

Dr. A. Aykut Ceyhan
Division of Psychological Counseling and Guidance
Anadolu University
Yunus Emre Kampus 26470
Eskisehir
Turkey
E-mail: aceyhan@anadolu.edu.tr