The Impact of Technology on the Spiritual Health of University Students: A Case Study of Africa University

Abstract

Technology has prompted diverse thoughts concerning its impact on the spiritual health of university students and it’s urgent that effective measures for better use are identified. This study aimed at examining the impact of technology on the spiritual health of university students. The study was conducted at Africa University; a United Methodist Related Institute located in Mutare Zimbabwe. A qualitative research design and a case study methodology were employed. Data was collected using questionnaires and participant observation, and data coding was employed to analyse collected data. After the presentation and analysis of the findings, the results showed that technology was a very essential instrument for the growth of the spiritual health of university students, it also showed that university students can balance the impact of technology on spiritual health. But it required self-control, personal morality and self-discipline on the side of the university students if it was to produce positive results that could benefit university students spiritually. However, watching of pornographic material proved to be a big hinderance to the spiritual health of university students as they used technology. Technology was also seen as a medium that could foster a faithful relationship between God and Humanity. Technology was understood to have brought salvation closer to humanity, through the abundant spiritual information online, and online platforms like religious websites. In other words, technology could easily lead university students to God’s kingdom if they used it in a proper way especially through sharing religious information. A model for technological use was formulated from the study which was developed based on the idea of technological Sabbath by (Heschel, 1951), the model is the Techno Spiritual Retreat (TSR) and the Awareness, Breathe, Choice and Doing (ABCD) formula.