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18 February 2014

High Internet Activity Equals Low Physical Activity

Keywords: internet, North America, Websites, health, survey, young adults,

A study in Journal of Interaction Science investigates whether Internet use is linked to physical activity among college students. The study shows that students who use the internet a lot are in general less physically active, especially for those who use it for visiting social network sites. Students who use the Internet primarily for academic tasks are more likely to be active.

Take aways

  • High internet use is linked to less intense physical activity among college students.
  • Students who use the internet primarily for visiting social networking sites are less likely to be active.
  • In contrast, those who use the internet for academic tasks are more likely to be active for about three days a week.
  • Internet use is not linked to moderate activities such as walking.
  • Sport educators should know that students who use the internet as a leisure activity are less likely to be physically active.

Study information

  • The question?

    Is internet use linked to physical activity among college students?

  • Who?

    189 young adults between the ages of 18 and 23 years (mean age: 19 years; 59% female); primarily European-American

  • Where?

    United States

  • How?

    Students received 6 text message questionnaires for 7 days. The questions were: “are you currently online?”, “if so, for how many minutes have you been online?”, and “what are you currently doing online?”. Afterwards, they completed the International Physical Activity questionnaire which accessed their time spent on intense and moderate physical activities. They also reported their weight and length.

Facts and findings

  • Students who reported using the internet frequently were active less often.
  • Students who used the internet mainly to visit social networking sites would exercise less often.
  • Students who used the internet primarily for academic tasks were more likely to exercise about three days a week.
  • Internet use was not linked to moderate physical activities, such as walking.
  • Critical note: This study does not allow for any conclusions about cause (e.g., internet use) and effect (e.g., physical activity). The results only show that higher internet use is associated with less physical activity and cannot say anything about what causes what.