Which of the following are associated with heavy use of Internet? A. Internet…

Concept — Research on media effects separates two different kinds of thing that can be linked to a medium. The first is an outcome associated with use — the behavioural, psychological and social states that repeatedly accompany heavy or excessive engagement, which cluster into dependence, mood disturbance, fragmented attention and weakened social bonds. The second is a competency — a trained ability to handle the medium critically, built through instruction and practice rather than accumulated through hours of exposure. A statement belongs with heavy use only when it names such an associated outcome, not a skill a person is taught.

Application — Take the five listed statements in turn.

1. Internet addiction (statement A): compulsive, poorly controlled online use that continues despite the harm it causes. Excessive time online is the setting in which this dependence pattern is observed.

2. Depression (statement B): studies of heavy users report elevated depressive symptoms, alongside reduced sleep, less physical activity, less face-to-face contact and greater social comparison.

3. Distraction (statement C): heavy online engagement goes together with a constant stream of notifications and rapid task-switching, and sustained attention is correspondingly reported to break into short spans.

4. Atomization (statement D): shared collective life is described as giving way to individuals interacting mainly through screens, with community ties thinning into isolated units.

5. Media literacy (statement E): the ability to access, analyse, evaluate and create media messages. It is developed through teaching and critical practice; spending more hours online does not by itself produce it.

Cross-check — sorting the five statements by their nature makes the grouping explicit.

Four statements — internet addiction, depression, distraction and atomization — are the outcomes the literature links to heavy Internet use, while media literacy is an acquired competency rather than something heavy use brings with it. The required combination is therefore statements A, B, C and D only.