Internet Users Turn Addicts
On June 14, ABC news reported that an "internet-crazed" Cincinnati woman was arrested for neglecting her three young children. The woman reportedly spent 12 hours straight online, while her hungry kids were locked away in one room so she could be online without interruption. The three kids were placed in county custody while the mother was tossed in jail.
The Internet is rapidly becoming an addictive source to a lot of its users. Users of the Internet include students, housewives, and business professionals. Some of these Internet users spend a minimum of thirty-eight hours per week on the "net"; hence, losing touch with reality and reeking havoc on their studies, family lives or careers.
Individuals such as these are classified as "Internet Addicts." Based on level of addiction, there are three groups of Internet addicts: i) the "I'm-not-addicted users," ii) the "I-only-use-it-when-I-have-to-users" and iii) the "Internet junkies."
The "I'm-not-addicted users" are the users who try to convince themselves that they are not addicted to the Internet. This group includes college students who don't go online during the day to prove to fellow students that they can do without getting online; only, to stay up all night in a chat room online. Or businesspeople who stay after office hours to supposedly get a late report done; only, to stay online until the security guy's ready to lock up the building. Or husbands who stay offline all day, only to get online for hours after their family members are asleep. These users are addicts but portray themselves otherwise in the presence of people.
Next, are "the I-only-use-it-when-I-have-to-users." These users make convenient excuses to use the Internet. Mothers who claim they have to visit their child's school's website, to read the highlights of the last PTA meeting, while they could have waited for the minutes of the meeting in the mail. They end up staying online for hours. Or college students who insist on checking out the ratings of a movie online, using this as an excuse to stay online for hours; while they could have looked in the local newspaper. Or businesspeople who use checking for e-mail, as an excuse to get online; even though, the computer announces when there's new mail. These addicts make excuses to justify their use of the Internet.
The third group of Internet users is the "Internet junkies." Unlike addicts in the previous two groups, these users neither sneak online nor make excuses to get online.
The internet is used today for many reasons. It is a platform for people to stay in touch with others, entertain themselves and complete work tasks. In the following articles, “Internet Addiction Left my Brother Homeless” by Winston Ross and “The Pointlessness of Unplugging” by Casey N. Cep, the internet is discussed very deeply, but in two varying lights. In the article by Cep the author is writing from personal experiences and research. In the article by Ross the author is writing merely from opinions.
Since computers have become so prevalent in our homes and our schools, how much do we actually use them? According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, 74.7% of people access the internet regularly from some lo...
As with any phenomenon, psychology must be interpreted to be understood (Burton, Westen and Kowalski, 2012, p. 3). Many physicians, physiologists and psychologists, such as Sigmund Freud, John Locke, Ivan Pavlov, and B. F. Skinner respectively, have developed and contributed to their own psychological perspectives which have carried on to the present day. This essay will explore the fundamental ideas, similarities and differences and strengths and weaknesses of both the psychodynamic perspective and the behaviourist perspective. This essay will then shift focus to internet addiction – what it is and how it can be explained. An intervention will then be developed for an individual suffering from internet addiction based on the behaviourist perspective.
...to influence the people and lead to the revolution through the spread of the writings of the philosophers. The spread of their ideas brought about a change in the minds of not only the people of France but also other countries.
Nowadays, the internet is not used intellectually, it is used for the wrong reasons like watching “a video of a cat vomiting or a teenager falling off a skateboard” (204). It seems as if most of our time is taken up by being on the internet, scrolling through meaningless posts that will not benefit us in any way. The usage of the internet reduces our productivity and diverts us from its real
The website, NetAddiction.com, has self-assessment tests that tell you if you are addicted or not. Here is a list of some of the questions the website would ask you: Do you neglect housework to spend more time online? Are you frequently checking your e-mail? Do you often lose sleep because you log in late at night? If technology is interfering with your daily life, it is an addiction and taking a toll on you. A clinical psychologist, Ms. Dowling calls that “Internet Dependence.” Some experts ideas for solving this problem would be setting limits of how many time you can check your email, social media, etc. An experiment with 200 people was done at the college of University or Maryland. They asked them to not use their technology all day, to see what the results of the people thought. Their experiment showed that quitting cold turkey is very difficult, but it makes them connect with people more. Technology is decreasing our time to have real conversations with people and enjoying and seeing stuff that we usually
Some participants say they use the internet the entire time they are awake. Tolerance is the increasing amount of a substance over time in order to achieve the desired effect meaning that subtle use was not enough. Craving is another symptom seen but not assessed in the DSM-5. Participants report craving internet use especially when the see that internet access is available to them. Loss of interest in other hobbies or activities was another sign seen in activities such as reduced either academic or project work, reduced socialization with friends and family, and reduced exercise because of the use of internet. The use of the internet in order to escape or relieve a negative mood was also observed among the participants, internet use is used as a distraction. The last symptom observed by the study was the “lying about the use”, individuals would lie to their family, friends, and therapist in order to conceal the extent of their involvement with the
In their article, Janarthanan Balakrishnan, and Mark D. Griffiths discuss that “internet viewers online addictions are primarily about addictions on the Internet rather than addiction to the Internet, and that most of those with online problematic behavior are addicted to the online content rather than
There were many causes and events leading up to the French Revolution in 1789. Before the Revolution, France had been involved in many expensive wars, especially the American War of Independence, causing financial difficulties and debts which were increased through the expensive upkeep of the Royal Family and their courts. At this time the Age of Enlightenment was occurring and new ideas, challenging the Ancien Regime and the Absolute right to rule, were emerging. The monarch of the time, King Louis XVI, was a weak monarch who was incapable of making decisions and sticking to them. King Louis XIV was also incapable of using his powers in a way to spark fear and gain control of those under his power. As a result of the high debts held by the French Government, the King decided to start taxing the First and Second Estates. They objected causing the Third Estate to question why the first two estates were given choice in paying taxes when the Third Estate, who were so heavily taxed, paid all their taxes. These were the major causes leading up to and, in some cases, triggering, the French Revolution.
One argument is that the internet is not the addiction, but is a medium to the addiction. The other argument is that the internet itself is the addictive substance. The argument that has the most support and is more believable in the research that it does is that the internet itself is the addiction. This makes sense for multiple reasons. One of the reasons is that some of the addictions on the internet are not possible to be addicted to without the internet. Another reason is that people also need information, and people can get addicted to the internet because they want the information. These are only some of the reasons why the internet should be considered an addictive substance. It is also important to know the difference between being addicted to the internet and being addicted to something on the internet. According to an article written in 2012 titled Internet addiction: how to fight it, it is two different ideas to be addicted to the internet and to be addicted to things such as online gambling and online sex. These differences are another part of why internet addiction is a real thing and not just a
In Greg Beato’s article “Internet Addiction” originally published in august, september 2010 in to Reason magazine he argues that internet addiction is a problem in our society today. Internet addiction should be reported in the Diagnostic and statistic manual of mental disorder (DSM). It is a huge problem, he also says that internet is like narcotic drugs and very addicting. He states that if ones use Google for few minutes only it leads us to spend more than a few minutes on the internet and it turns in to spending hours. Beato refers that University of Maryland did a group study for 24 hour and all the students went crazy without their phones and iPods, one girl admitted that she is an addict. The students were anxious and miserable. He also says that one kid killed his parents because they took away his Xbox. Internet also leads to death of people, therefore it is a problem and we should put it on to the DSM.
The use of the Internet has exploded in the past few decades, and the age of the user is swiftly declining as well (Greenfield, Patricia, and Zheng Yan). “The spread of Internet access has been described as nine times faster than that of radio, four times faster than the personal computer, and three times faster than television” (Shields, Margie, and Behrman 5). The Internet has woven itself into people’s daily lives and has really changed culture in numerous ways. It has helped make education more accessible, especially to those in developing countries. Specifically, it has brought life-saving health practices and information to those who otherwise would have gone without it.
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In this generation, everyone, mostly young adults, are glued to technology. We see people walking around, looking at the ground as if they have a ball and chain dangling from their necks. We see people sitting on their chairs and looking at their computer screens long enough for their backs to hurt and their eyes water from the bright screen. People addicted to the Internet are those who pay attention to a virtual world more than their own lives. Internet addiction has corrupted people’s social lives, prevented their maturation, and induced negative behaviors. In “Internet Addiction,” Greg Beato expresses how the Internet has corrupted lives and should be added to the “Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Behaviors.” If we continue our
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