We’ve been left to think that being on the Internet is a waste of time and not good for us overall. However, results of a recently-published survey shows that we have a better well-being with access to the Internet.
The Question of Whether the Internet Is Harmful to Well-Being
There has been talk over the years of everything from violent video games to handheld digital devices, to television and similar platforms, and that they weren’t good for children or people as a whole. Additionally, Apple, TikTok, Meta, and Google have released tools to make it easier for us to find out how much time we’re spending on these platforms and how to limit it. Windows also has tools to show network use. But earlier studies were inconsistent.
This study took a look at whether having Internet access or actively using the Internet affected eight well-being outcomes from 2006 to 2021 among 2,414,294 people in 168 countries: “life satisfaction, the extent to which individuals reported experiencing daily negative and positive experiences; two indices of social well-being; physical well-being, community well-being, and experiences of purpose.”
The questions in the survey asked whether the respondents’ home had access to the Internet, if there was access to the Internet in any way, If the respondents’ mobile phone could be used to access the Internet, and if they had used the Internet in the past seven days. They were asked what types of feelings they experienced during the access, if they felt well-rested, were treated with respect, smiled or laughed, learned something interesting, etc.
Overall, there were 84.9 percent positive and significant associations between Internet connectivity and well-being. That’s good for someone like me who makes her living on the Internet, while it’s also good for those who spend their time browsing, gaming, catching up on social media, etc.
Internet Access Well-Being Results
Note that there were so many involved in the study with slightly different questions throughout the many years, that sometimes the results have been shortened here for brevity.
Again, the results of this survey showed a consistently positive association between Internet access and well-being. On average, those with access to the Internet had “0.08 units greater life satisfaction, positive experiences, and social life satisfaction, and 0.06 units lower negative experiences” than non-Internet users.
Similarly, active Internet users had 0.03 to 0.08 unit increases in those same positive factors and 0.04 unit decreases in the same negative experiences. Mobile phone Internet access brought increases between 0.06 and 0.07 units.
Image source:
Unsplash
With regard to life satisfaction, there was a 0.04 unit increase in life satisfaction, for a summarized 96.38 percent of the “association between Internet Access or use and life satisfaction.” Negative associations were only 0.45%.
One factor that tended to raise the negative associations was demographics. Additionally, these negative associations tended to be from young women (15 to 24 years old). It’s assumed that it could be connected to cyberbullying. Somewhat similarly, it’s assumed that those without Internet access were below a certain income level.
I, for one, feel a positive association and do feel I have a better well-being, due to having Internet access. Though, I will add that when the Internet is not working, I do not have a positive association, as I assume most people don’t.
It could lead you to have a more positive experience if your connection was more secure. Check out this review of Surfshark VPN. To get more enjoyment, learn about using AI in your browser.
Image credit: Unsplash. Screenshot by Laura Tucker.
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Laura Tucker –
Contributor
Laura has spent more than 20 years writing news, reviews, and op-eds, with the majority of those years as an editor as well. She has exclusively used Apple products for the past 35 years. In addition to writing and editing at MTE, she also runs the site’s sponsored review program.
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