Factors Influencing Internet Addiction and Information Ethics : Centering on Self Characteristics and Cognitive Characteristics toward Internet

Recently, negative sides of internet, internet and/or game addiction and unethical behavior over internet, have been largely publicized in our society. There have been numerous studies to explore the problems and solutions, but these lack considering broader set of research variables. Therefore, this research investigated how i) internet users' self characteristics and ii) cognitive characteristics toward internet influence iii) internet addiction and iv) information ethics respectively. Especially, this study focused on college students, more mature beings than elementary, middle and high school students with whom most other researches have dealt so far. Major findings of this study are as follows: (1) Willingness to develop relationships over internet, usefulness of internet use, a degree to perceive the cyber space as real, and a degree to express self over internet have significant effects on disabled life style. Self respect willingness to develop relationships over internet, usefulness of internet use, a degree to perceive the cyber space as real, and capability of using internet have significant effects on the lack of control over internet. Willingness to develop relationships over internet, self control, and a degree to express self over internet have significant effects on the lack of control over internet. 2) Regarding the effects of independent variables(self characteristics and cognitive characteristics) on information ethics through internet addiction factors, self respect self control, a degree to perceive the cyber space as real, and capability of using internet have directly and indirectly significant effects on information ethics through internet addiction. Then we suggested four approaches to reduce the internet addiction and improve the information ethics based on the findings.