Reliance, Immersion, and Enjoyment: An Exploratory Socio-Psychological Analysis on Internet Involvement

Authors

C. Mo Bahk, California State University, San Bernardino

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationships between various socio-psychological variables and the level of involvement in the Internet. Two hundred thirty-four college students completed a self-administered questionnaire that contains the measures of Internet involvement, Internet usage, face-to-face interaction anxiety, computer ownership, and socio-demographic variables. A factor analysis identified three dimensions of Internet involvement: Reliance, Immersion, and Enjoyment. The results of stepwise regressions showed that face-to-face interaction anxiety is a significant indicator of both the Reliance and Immersion dimensions of Internet involvement. Age was another positive indicator of the Immersion dimension, whereas computer ownership contributed significantly to the prediction of the Reliance dimension of Internet involvement. The Enjoyment dimension was not significantly affected by any of the independent variables.

Recommended Citation

Bahk, C. Mo (2008) "Reliance, Immersion, and Enjoyment: An Exploratory Socio-Psychological Analysis on Internet Involvement," Communications of the IIMA: Vol. 8: Iss. 1, Article 7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.58729/1941-6687.1089
Available at: https://scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/ciima/vol8/iss1/7