Excessive Internet Use Increases School Truancy Among Teens
A study by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare revealed that teenagers who spend too much time online are more likely to miss school due to illness or truancy. Focused on 86,270 students aged between 14 and 16, the research asked them how often they shared their concerns with their parents, how much time they spent on the internet, how much they slept each night, and how many days a week they were active for at least an hour.
Participants were asked to score situations such as neglecting family, friends, and classes, experiencing anxiety when not online, and neglecting eating or sleeping because of being online as symptoms of excessive internet use. The survey also included questions about how many times they had been absent from school during the academic year. Survey results showed that high school girls had higher rates of excessive internet use compared to their male peers.
According to the survey data, spending an excessive amount of time online was associated with a 38% increase in the risk of truancy and a 24% increase in the risk of medically explained school absences. Additionally, good parental relationships and the ability to talk about concerns with parents were observed to reduce the risk of truancy. Adolescents who felt they could share their concerns with their parents were 59% less likely to miss school. Longer sleep duration and physical activity were also significant factors in protecting students from truancy.