Many say, “I can stop whenever I want to,” or “I do not use that much; I have friends who use much more than that.” These speakers’ rationalizations do not reference drugs or alcohol use, but, surprisingly, Internet addiction. According to the article “Hooked on the Web: Help is on the Way” by Sarah Kershaw, “Specialists estimate that six to ten percent of the approximately 189 million Internet users in this country have a dependency that can be as destructive as alcoholism and drug addiction.” This global problem must be addressed and can be reduced if users will go to therapy for their Internet addiction. Researchers are seeking a clarification of the term “Internet addiction.” It is debatable whether the compulsive use of the Internet should
According to Kershaw, “the Internet 's omnipresent offers of escape from reality, affordability, accessibility and opportunity for anonymity can also lure otherwise healthy people into an addiction.” The Internet has a wide variety of information and activities available to anyone on a computer. Because the Internet is easily accessible everywhere, it is simple for anyone to spend countless hours on the computer and eventually develop an addiction. Additionally, biological factors in a human 's brain can increase the chances of a person becoming addicted. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that plays a role in the reward and pleasure center of the brain. It also helps to control emotions. Sharon Jayson explains this concept in her article, “Ever-present Devices Can Push Our Crazy Buttons.” In this article, psychiatrist Steve Daviss of the Baltimore Washington Medical Center claims, "There 's good evidence the feedback we get from technology -- the retweets and bings and pings that come out of the phone every time somebody sends us a text message -- create a reward system in the brain that gives us a little squirt of dopamine each time" (qtd. in Jayson). Therefore, every time we use technology, we want to use it more and it may become
Kershaw provides an example of the negative effect of Internet addiction in the article “Hooked on the Web: Help is on the Way”. Mike is a 34 year old man who addresses his Internet addiction problem and seeks treatment. Before seeking treatment, Mike struggled with alcohol and drug abuse and depression along with Internet addiction. He often spent countless hours using the computer to search news and sports information. He never felt it was a problem because he liked it so much and used it in his everyday life. However, Internet addiction started to impact Mike’s life. He became unemployed and lived with his mother. It also affected his social interaction; he would rather be on the computer than be around other people (Kershaw). Another case where computer addiction is found to be a problem is in some Asian countries. Elizabeth Cooney, in her article “Some People Need Help To Kick Their Internet and Computer Gaming Obsessions” reports that “attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in girls and hostility in boys can predispose children to later Internet addiction, which they estimate affects 4 percent of children in Korea and 15 percent in China.” Furthermore, there have been reports of death due to Internet addiction as well. In Korea, a man died because he did not perform basic survival skills such as eating and sleeping for 50 hours due to his Internet addiction (Cooney). In the article “Computer
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. Another major difference in the two pieces is the main idea of the articles. In Cep’s article the main idea of his work is the idea of Unplugging from the internet. In Ross’s article, rather, the main point of his work is to discuss internet
He had a group of high degree web surfers and a group of beginners. Gary gave both groups a pair of goggles to wear and told them to search the web. 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 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
In his article “internet addiction”, published in 2010 by Reason Magazine, Greg Beato tries to show how internet addiction, an excessive behavior brought up by the psychiatrist Ivan Gilbert, is an important issue for the society and why it should be considered as a behavior disorder. He supports his thesis by using a lot of evidence such as graphics, statistics, and researches. Although, Beato’s arguments about the causes of internet addiction and the reasons why it should add to the DSM are mostly true, some of his observations on the future are pessimistic.
Griffiths, Mark. “Excessive Internet Use: Implications for Sexual , Behavior.” CyberPsychology & Behavior. 3.4 (2000): 537-52.
The internet is an essential tool in everyday life. The age of a person does not matter, because whether they are a teen, an adult, or an elderly person in order to stay in contact with others they will need the internet. However, the internet is dangerously addictive. Some studies say that the internet is not the addiction, but the means of getting to the addiction. The more believable of the two studies are the ones that discuss the internet being the addiction. Curtis stated in 2012 that reports on the brain are showing that people who excessively use the internet show abnormalities similar to people who suffer from substance addiction. Curtis also stated that internet addiction was becoming
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.
Social media although a great tool can become an addiction ultimately affecting our lives and state of mind. That is why we need to limit the amount of time and information we share on social networks. Although the internet is a tool full of good and bad available to everyone, teenagers and young adults are more prone to falling into the traps of the internet. People also abuse social media and overuse it every day because they are concerned with what is happening every hour. Social media is a tool not a necessity and should never be abused or used as a diary because it could result in unwanted consequences that can hurt us in the future.
With 2,405,518,376 (World Statistics, 2014) users around the world there is no doubt that some users are bound to develop addiction. “Internet addiction is when a person has a compulsive need to spend a great deal of time on the Internet, to the point where other areas of life (such as relationships, work or health) are allowed to suffer.” (Better Health Channel, 2011). With this scientists around the world are fighting to beat these addictions. Two theoretical perspectives that play heavily into the treatment process are Behavioural and Psychodynamic psychology. “Behavioural psychology is a branch of psychology that focuses on observable behaviours. Conditioning, reinforcement and punishment are key concepts used by behaviourists. Learn more about classical conditioning and operant conditioning as well as some of the major behaviourist thinkers,” (About, 2014). Where as, “The basis of the psychodynamic perspective is to understand what is going on in the mind of an individual or "to get in the head" of a patient to see what is going on in the unconscious part of the mind. This will provide insight into how the patient views his relationships, experiences, and the world and how that affects his preferences, behaviours, and drives, and therefore personality,” (Your Dictionary, 2014).
Certain studies have shown that children are being affected by this addiction both socially and behaviorally. Smart phones are making it so that children no longer think that they have to learn to do things face-to-face with anyone. There are some children who will not talk to their friend, even if they are in the same room, instead they just text each other. Children rarely even call to each other on the phone, because of these smart phones. Without these skills it makes it even harder for people to jobs that require face-to-face negotiations, because the children never learned the required skills to do the job. However, internet addiction affects children differently when it comes to behavior. According to Kilic et al. in an article he and others wrote in 2015, adolescents who are addicted to the internet are more likely to participate in risk-taking behaviors, such as alcohol consumption, dangerous driving, and unprotected sex. They also said that children and adolescents diagnosed with ADHD will no longer have a willingness to do homework, but will have a desire to watch television, play video games, and surf the internet (Kilic, Uncu, Vural, 2015). This addiction will only lead to them being under the control of their supplier, or in this case internet
Accessing the cyberspace is the first right should be granted in order to have privilege of and exercise the rest of the human rights on the internet. The internet has a very big impact in people’s life and what they have become today, especially with all the opportunities this medium provide for them to exercise their basic human rights. It has allowed the freedom of many voices to be heard in ways that was merely impossible before this revolution. Not only it has given people the rights to express and associate, but also the right to education as it allows to access many educational materials. In fact, accessing this virtual place has become a necessity to fulfill many other human rights including the right to work, and the right to take part in country’s government. Therefore, internet access should be a public right that ensure information and internet accessibility, usability, and availability for all people regardless of gender, place, and income.
For many years, people have suffered many devastations about addiction. It has become a common killer in the United States just like murder. Addiction has affected over 23 million people from the age 12 and older. These addictions are wide ranging, they can include alcohol, drugs, sex, video games, food, pornography, and gambling. People like to keep quite because they view this disease as morally wrong. Addicts sometimes shut out their family member because they are afraid of the reaction if anyone knew their problem. The Nation Institute of Drug Abuse states Addiction is as a chronic, relapsing brain disease that is characterized by compulsive drug seeking and use, despite harmful consequences.Today in 2016 addiction is spreading across
This online article was useful for my research because it showed how over use of technology impact on people. This article also gives background information on internet addiction and internet dependence. The source is one of the best sources used in my research due to the fact that it had some of the basic information about the harmful effect of becoming so much dependent on technology.
Have you ever thought how much time do you spend using on a computer in a day/week? Computers are as common in numerous households around the world. People from all age groups are learning to operate computers and anyone who has worked with computers for long periods of time knows that computers can be just as addicting as drinking every night of the week. Take further, Computer addiction can have a number of physical, social, and psychological effects on a person, and it is to be taken as seriously as any other addiction that a person is against, but what are those possible effects of spending too much time on the computer, and what are the causes.