Abstract:

The internet has radically changed our lives, more than any other technological medium. We still know relatively little about its effects on our psychological functioning, mental health, and well-being. Social networks are currently the most frequent communication tool, especially among the young generation, which enables communication with friends and acquaintances, and searching for and finding new contacts with new people with similar or different interests. Hand in hand with this exponential growth of internet users all around the world does a significant increase in internet addiction especially among adolescents and young adults. People frequently enter the virtual world because they want to escape from depression or to obtain acceptance from friends and peers. The aim of the research is to evaluate the relationship between potential IA, self-esteem, and depression among pre-service teachers belonging to Generation Y or Z. The participants were 284 pre-service teachers aged 19-36 (SD 3, 81). To determine the empirical data we used the following research methods: Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Young Internet Addiction Test, Beck Depression Inventory-II, and Sociodemographic Questionnaire. A negative relationship was found between age, self-esteem, internet addiction, and the level of depression among social network users. The results of the research suggested the following intergenerational differences. The generation Z pre-service teachers have a significantly higher level of depression than the Generation Y pre-service teacher. The generation Z pre-service teachers have lower self- esteem than the pre-service teachers belonging to the generation Y.

Keywords:

Internet addiction, depression, self- esteem, teachers.