This study intends to examine the relationship between internet addiction and juvenile delinquency. There may be several hypotheses. According to strain, control and opportunity theory, the relationship between internet addiction and delinquency is positive. For strain/control theory, two relationship may be mediated by parents-youth relationship or school failure. And for opportunity theory, it is hypothesized that it relationship can be appeared in not off-line delinquency but on-line delinquency and also its may be mediated by internet using time. On the other hands, according to self theorists, two relationship may be negative. It can be also suggested that two relationship may be spurious. Using data from 1,113 middle and high school students, this study tests those several hypotheses.
Results show that internet addiction has a positive effect on on-line delinquency and its effect is mediated by internet using time, but the relationship between internet addiction and off-line delinquency is spurious and both are influenced by lower self-control.