Skip to Content (press Enter/Return)
Essays
Topics
preview

Internet Addiction

Good Essays
Open Document
With the growth of technology in recent years, many people have added the internet as a part of their daily routine. It has become very common to go online for most people, as it makes interaction and finding information into a much simpler task. The internet is a great place for social networking and meeting or communicating with people across the world. Nicholas Carr, author of the article “Is Google Making Us Stupid”, claims that using the internet on a regular basis can potentially make people less intelligent. Alongside damaging your general intelligence, I believe that it is also possible for a person to become addicted to the internet. When a person becomes addicted to the internet, they not only potentially become less intelligent, like Carr believes, but they also develop mental and psychological problems. I believe that people should become more aware of internet addiction. Once someone becomes addicted to the internet, it is just like a real drug and can be incredibly difficult to detach yourself from it.

Although internet addiction has many similar symptoms that addictive drugs have, it is not currently classified as an addiction. Some psychologists argue that internet addiction is a symptom of depression rather than a clinical disorder. Many people believe that the internet is just a tool used for research, social networking, and entertainment. Internet addiction is not an actual diagnosis, it is only a problem. Although it is only a problem, it can cause impairment or distress. Expert Weinstein Aviv believes that there are four components that are essential to the diagnosis. “1) excessive Internet use, often associated with a loss of sense of time or a neglect of basic drives, 2) withdrawal, including feelings of an...

... middle of paper ...

...owing problem worldwide, it is also one that many people are unaware of. People need to make sure that they know how much time they spend on the internet and what kind of an affect it is having on them.

Works Cited

Carr, Nicholas. “Not addiction; dependency.” Rough Type. May 2010. 1 December 2011.
Flisher, Caroline. “Getting Plugged In: An Overview of Internet Addiction” Journal of
Paediatrics &Child Health. Vol. 46. Issue 10. p557-59. October 2010. 3
March 2014.

Lam, Lawrence. “Factors Associated With Internet Addiction Among
Adolescents.“ CyberPsychology& Behavior. Vol. 12 Issue 5. p551-55. October 2009. 3 March 2014.

Masnick, Mike. “Internet Addiction Not Quite An Addiction...” TechDirt. October
2006. 3 March 2014

Weinstein, Aviv. “Internet Addiction or Excessive Internet Use.“ American Journal of
Drug & AlcoholAbuse. Vol. 36. Issue 5. p277-83. 2010. 3 Ma
Get Access
Related
Get Access