Monika Jujnović, Dragan Glavaš, Vesna Mijoč, Ivica Matić

DOI: https://www.doi.org/10.64332/ujbb.3.1.5

Abstract
Aim: The aim of this study was to examine the association between Internet addiction and physical activity among students enrolled in vocational health-oriented secondary schools.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 157 students from two vocational health-oriented secondary schools. Data were collected using the Internet Addiction Test for Adolescents (IAT-A) and the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Adolescents (PAQ-A). Since the data were not normally distributed, nonparametric statistical methods were used. Group differences were analysed using the Mann–Whitney U test and the Kruskal–Wallis test, while the association between Internet addiction and physical activity was examined using Spearman’s rank-order correlation.

Results: The median PAQ-A score was 2.40 (IQR 2.05–3.05), indicating generally low levels of physical activity among participants. Students who attended Physical and Health Education (PHE) demonstrated significantly higher physical activity levels compared with those who did not (Mann–Whitney U = 2166, p = 0.013, r = 0.24). Most students exhibited mild levels of Internet addiction (59.2%). No statistically significant differences in Internet addiction or physical activity were observed across most sociodemographic variables. Furthermore, no significant association was found between Internet addiction and physical activity (ρ = 0.026, p = 0.745).

Conclusion: No statistically significant association between Internet addiction and physical activity was observed in this sample. Participants demonstrated relatively low levels of physical activity and predominantly mild levels of Internet addiction. These findings suggest that Internet use and physical activity may represent independent behavioural domains in adolescents, highlighting the need for targeted interventions to promote physical activity regardless of Internet use patterns.

Keywords: internet addiction; physical activity; adolescents; students; physical education