(2010) acknowledge research that emphasises the negative effect (loneliness) of Internet use. Morahan-Martin and Schumacher draw on HomeNet 's longitudinal case study of 169 individuals over two years by monitoring their activity and respondents ' self reports. The findings revealed that "greater internet use was associated with increased levels of loneliness" (2003:660). That being said, the authors conclude based on their own research findings that making such a claim is too general. Rather, the distinguishing factor is that of the respondents ' normal behaviour behind the screen; or the location of Internet use. In other words, people who are lonely to begin prefer anonymous Internet activities over real interactions, which encourages more time spent online - especially in isolated venues, leading to heightened feelings of loneliness. Whereas, those who are not lonely to begin with use the Internet to communicate with people they know via e-mail for the majority - from more social-oriented venues, thus the loneliness conclusion does not apply to this sub-sample (Morahan-Martin and Schumacher 2003, and Hampton et al.
(2010) acknowledge research that emphasises the negative effect (loneliness) of Internet use. Morahan-Martin and Schumacher draw on HomeNet 's longitudinal case study of 169 individuals over two years by monitoring their activity and respondents ' self reports. The findings revealed that "greater internet use was associated with increased levels of loneliness" (2003:660). That being said, the authors conclude based on their own research findings that making such a claim is too general. Rather, the distinguishing factor is that of the respondents ' normal behaviour behind the screen; or the location of Internet use. In other words, people who are lonely to begin prefer anonymous Internet activities over real interactions, which encourages more time spent online - especially in isolated venues, leading to heightened feelings of loneliness. Whereas, those who are not lonely to begin with use the Internet to communicate with people they know via e-mail for the majority - from more social-oriented venues, thus the loneliness conclusion does not apply to this sub-sample (Morahan-Martin and Schumacher 2003, and Hampton et al.