COVID-19 Lockdown Restrictions and Online Media Consumption in Germany

Tagrid Lemenager, Miriam Neissner, Anne Koopmann, Iris Reinhard, Ekaterini Georgiadou, Astrid Müller, Falk Kiefer and Thomas Hillemacher
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Tagrid Lemenager: Department of Addictive Behavior and Addiction Medicine, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, 68159 Mannheim, Germany
Miriam Neissner: Department of Addictive Behavior and Addiction Medicine, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, 68159 Mannheim, Germany
Anne Koopmann: Department of Addictive Behavior and Addiction Medicine, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, 68159 Mannheim, Germany
Iris Reinhard: Department of Biostatistics, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, 68159 Mannheim, Germany
Ekaterini Georgiadou: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Paracelsus Medical University, 90419 Nuremberg, Germany
Astrid Müller: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Hannover Medical School, 30625 Hannover, Germany
Falk Kiefer: Department of Addictive Behavior and Addiction Medicine, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, 68159 Mannheim, Germany
Thomas Hillemacher: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Paracelsus Medical University, 90419 Nuremberg, Germany

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 18, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: The lockdown restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic have led to increased stress levels and feelings of anxiety in the general population. Problematic usage of certain online applications is one frequent way to compensate for negative feelings and stress. The current study investigated changes of online media consumption during the lockdown in Germany. Gender and age specific differences in specific online activities were assessed. n = 3245 subjects participated in an online survey conducted between the 8th April and the 11th May 2020. Participants’ age ranged between 18 and >55 years. A considerably high percentage (71.4%) of participants reported increased online media consumption during the lockdown. Male participants were more likely to increase their consumption of gaming and erotic platforms, while female participants reported a higher increase in the engagement in social networks, information research, and video streaming than males. The findings revealed an increased usage of all online applications during the lockdown. For the clarification whether the increase might present a risk for elevated Internet-use disorders or can be regarded as a functional and time-limited phenomenon, further studies, assessing changes in these online activities after the end of the pandemic, are needed.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic; online media consumption; age and gender specific differences (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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