International Journal of Innovative Research in Health Science

Introduction: Internet overuse is a phenomenon that has increased of problem in adolescents, especially in hostel staying girls, as it is a phenomenon that has a detrimental impact on the quality of sleep and general well-being. Excessive use of digital media is linked to insomnia, emotional difficulties, and bad performance at school. Aim: The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of time spent on internet on sleep quality of adolescent girls who live in a chosen hostel in Madurai. Methodology: The research design was a quantitative, non-experimental and descriptive study design. Data collection was done on 100 female adolescents between the ages of 17 and 19 years who live at Surya Girls Hostel, Shenoy Nagar, Madurai. A purposive sampling method used a non-probability technique to select the participants. The measures were gathered in the form of a structured questionnaire which includes social-demographic factors, the Young Internet Addiction Questionnaire, and the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The instruments were tested and proved to be credible. Data analysis was carried out using descriptive and inferential statistics. Findings: The findings made show that 53 and 28 percent of the studied participants were slightly and moderately addicted to the internet, respectively, with no one being severely addicted to the internet. The quality of sleep was not good in 83 percent of the respondents and the mean sleep score was 9.2 and 3.4. The results revealed a very strong relationship between internet addiction and type of recreation ( 2 6.55, 0.008) and daily hours spent on internet ( 2 12.93, 0.044). More internet usage was related to a greater level of addiction and low quality of sleep. Conclusion: The researchers got the conclusion that over-use of internet has a great impact on the sleep quality of teenage girls. Healthy internet habits and sleep hygiene need to be promoted to help them to achieve physical, psychological, and academic well-being.