The Influence of Internet Use and Digital Participation on Achievement and Gender Differences

• Main Author: Christopher David Copple
• Other Authors: Sufen Chen
• Format: Others
• Language: en_US
• Published: 2019
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/yu6fy3

碩士 === 國立臺灣科技大學 === 數位學習與教育研究所 === 107 === Previous research has highlighted the fact that Internet use can have a direct impact on students in both positive (i.e., ease of access to information) and negative (i.e., physical health problems, poor sleep, emotional disturbances) ways. This study defined decrement as a gradual lowering of quality over time. The current research seeks to find relationships between Internet use and decremented academic performance. Using 5 longitudinal waves gathered from 1,268 Taiwanese 7th, 8th and 9th grade students, the cross-legged paths between GPA, different types of digital participation, compulsive Internet use (CIU), and decremented academic performance due to internet use will be examined. The same group of subjects were surveyed in 7th grade, and again over time in the 8th and 9th grades. Special attention was paid to if and how these factors are different between male and female students. The results revealed that female students self-reported higher CIU, decremented academic performance due to Internet use, and digital participation than males in all categories except for media types of digital participation. Furthermore, CIU and decremented academic performance due to Internet use were found to be predictors of GPA in all 5 waves. Digital participation also predicted GPA in all waves, but the types digital participation which were predictors varied between waves. Lastly, significant correlations were found between CIU and decremented academic performance due to Internet use, CIU and various types of digital participation, and between decremented academic performance due to Internet use, GPA, and various types of digital participation. It was concluded that adolescents’ academic performance can be negatively influenced by certain types of digital participation and internet use.