Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study is to find out the correlation between internet addiction and school adjustment of 3rd and 4th graders in elementary schools. Methods: The subjects were 689 graders from five schools in five districts, located in G, Korea and the data were collected ficxn April 18 to May 15, 2005. A scale consisting of 25 questions were developed as an instrument for testing internet addiction and a further 25 questions were developed for examining school Adjustment. The data was analyzed by testing frequency, percentage, means, standard deviation, t-test, ANOVA, Scheffe test and Pearson's Correlation using SPSS/PC 10.0. Results: The results were as follows: The degree of internet addiction tendency were 6.0% of addiction, 24.2% of borderline and 69.8% of non-addiction. There were significant differences in school adjustment in terms of the degree of internet addiction(F=39.88, p< .05) and significant negative correlation between the degree of internet addiction and the school adjustment; the more they used to the internet, the lower school adjustment they have(r=- .376, p< .05). Conclusion: Those graders who started using the internet at an earlier age, were found to have increased levels of internet addiction. therefore, it is necessary to develop a program for the prevention of intemet addiction and a school adjustment education program is recommended for that.