The Internet has become the most widely used method by which millions of people from around the world communicate, disseminate information, and retrieve new information. But, recent studies by experts have shown that computer overuse by some computer users may over shadow the usefulness of this modern day phenomenon (Potera, 1998). Since very little work has directly addressed studying personality traits of computer users in correlation to psychological constructs from computer related overuse, available research and literature is limited.

Wolf (1999) in a preliminary study of observes the importance in looking at personal characteristics of computer users, particularly personality traits, to determine the relationship to outcomes of human-computer interactions there might be. There has been a significant change in the type of computer users who when initially investigated in earlier studies. Most investigators of earlier studies were focusing on stress related tasks by computer programmers, and computer users who were learning a computer programming language. In recent studies that are being conducted, the focus is on computer users who use the Internet for non-work related tasks (e.g., entertainment, email, web surfing, and chat rooms).

Wolfe reports that in a study proposed by Eysenck and Eysenck that there are three general traits of personalities that lead to psychological constructs from computer overuse: Neuroticism, Extraversion, and Psychoticism.

To further understand the personality traits and  correlation of human-computer interactions and psychological constructs, definitions of each of the three personality traits are given. As observed in the study neurosis is marked by excessive anxiety or apprehension that is not restricted to specific situations or objects, unlike anxiety experienced in threatening situations. Extraversion, direction of attention and energy outward from the self, and Psychoticism focused on the disturbances of such magnitude that there is personality disintegration and loss of contact with reality.

A research questionaire was constructed that included demographic location and computer generated questions regarding usuage of computer and the Internet. The mean reported age of the participants were 23.8 years old. The majority of the sampe were male (54%) and owned a computer (61%). The sample group chosen were 95 college students, randomly chosen to ensure that the study was not biased.  The results revealed that Extroversion and Neuroticism personality traits were buffers, preventing the affects of computer related stress occurances.  These personality traits stabilized the participants involvement  from stress related activities (e.g. disonnection from the internet, inappropriate instant messages from online users, and game losses  experienced from computer virtuality games).
 

Althought this was a prilimenary study of a small domain of participants, the domain selected was based on computer programers and computer language learners. Since the active users of the Internet are not computer programers or computer language learners, a more recent study with the most current  Internet users could be useful.