The emergence and continued growth of computer network technology have become facts of life for many people. Computer network addiction – a psychological phenomenon existed in and a set of behaviors demonstrated by some network users – has recently received considerable attentions. The purpose of this survey study is to examine the correlations among computer network addiction, network usage and communication pleasure experience. This study discusses what computer network addiction is, the methods to measure the degree of network addiction, the correlations between users’ network addiction degree, their network usage, and their self-reported communication pleasure experience. Research questions recommended for future studies on computer network addiction are also outlined.
The present study developed a survey questionnaire including 3 parts for network addiction, communication pleasure experience, and network usage. One hundred and four valid samples were collected. In summary, the preliminary results of our study indicted that the total hours of network use is not significantly correlated with subjects communication pleasure experience, but significantly positive correlated with the total score of network addiction. The result also indicated that the total score of network addiction is significantly positive correlated with communication pleasure experience.