A study of male and female university students' differences in internet self-disclosure , internet social support and loneliness.

• Main Authors: Kuo Cheng Ying, 郭正瑩
• Other Authors: 黃政昌
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2008
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/97160200443889543042

碩士 === 中國文化大學 === 心理輔導研究所 === 96 === The purpose of the study is to investigate internet self-disclosure, internet social support and loneliness of male and female undergraduates who have cyber friends on instant messengers. The first goal is to investigate differences of internet self-disclosure, internet social support and loneliness between male and female undergraduates. The second goal is to investigate differences of internet self-disclosure, internet social support and loneliness between male and female undergraduates who have cyber friends on instant messengers. The third goal is to investigate how internet self-disclosure and internet social support make differences in male and female undergraduates’ loneliness. The last goal is to investigate how internet self-disclosure and internet social support predict male and female undergraduates’ loneliness. Convenience sampling was used in the study, selecting four universities in Taipei. 1271 questionnaires were delivered and 1199 acceptable questionnaires are collected. 571 undergraduates have cyber friends on instant messengers. The instruments include Online Self-disclosure Scale, Internet Social Support Scale and Loneliness Scale. Descriptive statistic, t-test, chi-square test, and stepwise multiple regression were used to analyze the data by SPSS 10.0. After the design and practice of the study, significant findings were as follows: 1. The undergraduates’ internet usage and internet friendship: the undergraduates use internet 8 years, 23 hours per week averagely. 99 percent undergraduates have used instant messengers and used it for 5 years. The undergraduates use instant messengers 8.7 hours per week, 37.8 percent of time in using internet. Male undergraduates spend more time on the internet than female ones. Male undergraduates spend 26.47 hours while female ones spend 20.10 hours per week averagely. 57 percent undergraduates have talked to strangers on the internet. 44 percent undergraduates have cyber friends. 31 percent undergraduates make friends from the internet. The undergraduates have 7.16 friends on the internet averagely and spend 3.51 hours talking to them weekly. The proportion of male undergraduates who have made cyber friends is more than female ones. 61.4 percent male undergraduates have talked to strangers on the internet while 53.4 percent female ones do. 48.6 percent male undergraduates have friends on the internet while 40.8 percent female ones do. The undergraduates who have made friends on the internet are lonelier than who don’t. 2. The undergraduates’ internet self-disclosure, internet social support and loneliness: Male undergraduates’ internet self-disclosure are more than female ones but their internet social support are less than female ones, and they are lonelier, too. No matter male or female undergraduates, the high internet self-disclosure group is lonelier than the low internet self-disclosure group. The male high and low internet social support groups have on differences in loneliness while the female high internet social support group is less lonely than female low internet social support group. 3. High- intimacy internet self-disclosure and college can predict 12.5 percent of male undergraduates’ loneliness while High- intimacy internet self-disclosure, internet social support, middle- intimacy internet self-disclosure and low- intimacy internet self-disclosure can predict female 22.6 percent of male undergraduates’ loneliness. Finally, study findings were conclude, providing the state of male and female undergraduates’ loneliness as reference materials, to help the authorities reduce undergraduates’ loneliness.