A new study by UK psychologists suggested that the longer you spend surfing the Web, the unhappy you’re likely to be, revealing a connection between heavy internet use and depression.

Researchers observed Internet use and depression levels in more than 1,000 British residents between the ages of 16 and 51. The study, reported in the journal Psychopathology, labeled 1.2% of people surveyed as "internet addicts", and many of these were depressed.

The study’s lead author, Catriona Morrison reveals that these addicts tended to spend more time browsing sexually gratifying Web sites, online communities and online gaming sites.

“Some people go online because they’re depressed and they want immediate relief”, says Jean Cirillo, a Long Island psychologist. “It takes a lot of energy to go out and meet people, and there is always the fear of rejection”.

The research involved the analyses of responses by 1,319 respondents to on-line questionnaire. The respondents were aged 16 to 51, with an average age of 21.

It is found that a small number of users had developed a compulsive internet habit, substituting social life interaction with online chat rooms and social networking sites.

The internet addicts suffer from significantly more depression than the non-addicted group, with a depression score five times higher.