INTERNET PARADOX - A SOCIAL TECHNOLOGY THAT REDUCES SOCIAL INVOLVEMENT AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING

The Internet could change the lives of average citizens as much as did the telephone in the early pal? of the 20th century and television in the 1950s and 1960s. Researchers and social critics are debating whet her the Internet is improving or harming participation in community li fe and social I relationships. This research examined the social and p sychological impact of the Internet on 169 people in 73 households dur ing their first 1 to 2 years on-line. We used longitudinal darn to exa mine the effects of the Internet on social involvement and psychologic al well-being. In this sample, the Internet was used extensively for c ommunication. Nonetheless, greater use of the Internet was associated with declines in participants' communication with family members in th e household,, declines in the size of their social circle, and increas es in their depression and loneliness. These findings have implication s for research, for public policy: and for the design of technology.