Computer Effects on the Academic Performance of Students - Review of Related Literature

Purpose OF Study

The purpose of this paper is to explore the extent to which social factors, delineated in terms of interpersonal communication variables, are associated with what is referred to as Internet addiction among college students at a large Midwestern University. We also want to determine if gender, locus of control, and individual sociability moderate the relationships between communication variables and Internet utilization. This type of analysis makes the current study more systematic in its approach for understanding the dynamics underlying the so-called Internet addiction phenomena. Previous studies on this topic have been more descriptive in their methodological approach and have not systematically attempted to empirically describe the manner in which the variation in Internet utilization is explained by selected social or social psychological factors. We contend that such an analysis will offer a different viewpoint of the so-called Internet addiction phenomena that has been presented by the psychological frameworks that currently predominate the discussion and analyses on this topic.

The paper will proceed with the following format:

A brief overview of the psychological approaches to Internet addiction
Discussion of sociological factors that may affect Internet utilization
Statement of research questions that incorporate social communication variables
Description of research methods
Analyses of data
Discussion

“Effects of computer usage to the academic performance of students”

Chapter II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

The scope of Computer effects derives a wide scope of related literature that is worth mentioning.

In this regard, this literature review concerning the effects of computer usage to the academic performance of students, will address the following areas relevant to this study: History of the Computer; Importance of Computers, Negative Effects of Gaming; Computer Crime; Computer Use recommendations; and conclusion.

HISTORY OF THE COMPUTER

Many people do not know how, or even when computers were first made. Even before the first electronic computers were made, many people believe that computers started with the abacus, a simple counting device. The abacus is believed to have been built in Babylon in the fourth century B.C. The "First Generation" of computers started in the very late 1930's. These computers were grotesquely slow, colossal in size, created much heat, used hundreds of kilowatts of power, and were about as reliable as a used up match (www.pbs.org). As time went on, these computers evolved from using vacuum tubes to transistors. Transistors mark the beginning of the "Second Generation" of computers in 1947. Unfortunately, the 2nd Generation did not advance as much as most people hoped, but eventually, the "Third Generation" was brought about by the invention of integrated circuits in 1958. Integrated circuits replaced transistors, and many computer languages came out in this time. Many more computer companies were born during this time, and eventually this led to personal computers for everyday use. Microprocessors introduced the beginning of the "Fourth Generation" and a time where computers were in almost every house.

IMPORTANCE OF COMPUTERS

In the last decade the role of the computer has changed radically as the development of technology found new possibilities of using these 'intelligent' machines.