Internet and mental health

The impact of internet usage on mental health has been discussed controversially, both in the scientific community and in public, for many years. It is undebated that the different forms of internet usage affect the habits, perceptions and feelings of the user. It is arguable, however, how internet usage impacts their mental health. The interdisciplinary research-project “Internet and mental health” combines different scientific disciplines, methods and perspectives to answer the question, how internet usage influences the psyche of a single person and life in society.

The project is located at the Centre of Internet and Mental Health at the Charité Berlin, funded by the Daimler and Benz Foundation. Participating institutions are the Charité Berlin, the Science of Communication Department at the University of Münster and the International Centre for Ethics in the Sciences and Humanities (IZEW) in Tübingen. The team in Berlin interviews healthy subjects but also ambulant and stationary patients, to inquire the meaning of internet usage for the development of mental disorders and processes of recovery. The team in Münster carries out representative surveys to reassess the results from the interviews and to answer the question, if pathologically relevant cases can be differentiated empirically from “highly engaged” or “normal” internet usage.

The philosophical content of the research-project is located at the IZEW in Tübingen. It investigates to what extend ascriptions as “normal”, “disordered” or “healthy” online-behaviour can be justified in an objective way. In this context, the social and technical influence of internet usage is also reflected from an ethical perspective, to localize the responsibility for the usage of technology.

Funding
Funded by the Daimler and Benz Foundation
Duration: May 2016 until April 2018

Research Associate 
Florian Heusinger von Waldegge
E-Mail: florian.heusinger-von-waldeggespam prevention@izew.uni-tuebingen.de
Tel.: +49 / 7071 / 29-77986
Fax: +49 / 7071 / 29-5255

Research Partners
Prof. Dr. Dr. Andreas Heinz (Charité Berlin)
Dr. Jan Kalbitzer (Charité Berlin)
Prof. Dr. Thorsten Quandt (University of Münster)