Internet Addiction: Content Analysis
My project will follow a content analysis format and will examine the social problems claims regarding internet addiction. I will use ten online newspaper articles as my analysis material. I will look at how this social problem is coded by studying the following patterns and themes that occur in the articles. The three main patterns and themes that I found are the comparisons between internet addictions and drug addictions, the validity of the internet as an independent addiction, and the differences in the proposed solutions.
First, all ten of the articles agreed that internet addiction is a legitimate addiction, despite its lack of presence in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th Edition, or the DSM-5. There is still a level of public controversy on the validity of internet use as an addiction, so some articles approach the topic with varying degrees of skepticism. However, all of the articles did eventually agree that internet addiction is legitimate. 50% of the articles claimed that internet addiction is similar to a drug addiction. The articles that did not make this claim did not deny it, but instead simply chose not to include it in their contents. Some of the articles that argued for this comparison focused on the physical similarities between internet and drug addictions. An example of this can be found in Catherine Steiner-Adair’s article. She writes, “[an internet addict] becomes restless, angry or depressed when unable to engage in [the internet],” (2). Some of the articles that claimed that internet addiction is similar to a drug addiction chose a different approach. Rather than highlighting the obvious physical symptoms, these articles discussed how, w...
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...d themes found in articles about internet addiction. Those patterns are the comparisons between internet addictions and cocaine, heroin and other drug addictions, the validity of the internet as an independent addiction, and the differences and similarities in the different proposed solutions. The articles that I analyzed were online newspaper articles and, my paper followed a content analysis format. All of my articles agreed that internet addiction is a legitimate addiction, and half of my articles presented comparisons between internet addiction and drug addiction. 40% of my articles claimed that internet addiction was made worse when it was used as a catalyst for other addictions, such as gambling, pornography, or gaming addictions. 80% of my articles provided solutions to internet addictions, though there was not a conclusive opinion on which strategy was best.
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
Addiction is one of the most common problems worldwide from a very long time. For centuries, people used drugs, alcohol, tobacco and struggled with the problem of physical addictions. Nowadays, the problem of addiction became larger including behavioral addictions like gambling, sex, shopping, internet addiction etc. However, there are still different views about its nature and classification. According to West (2013, p. 22), the reason for this uncertainty is that addiction is a multifaceted, socially defined concept rather than something physical that has clear and unique boundaries. Therefore, it is important to know what addiction actually is. Although there are different definitions of addiction, an objective definition that contains its basic features is:
Day after day we read in the newspapers and about the political turmoil and the candidates and email and the struggle of American politics. I strive to read more than just those articles, since I want to learn about the real struggles of the American people. I want to learn about the bigger problems behind the scenes in the US and what can be done to help. This was the reasoning for the choice of my article for this week’s critique on addiction and the story of Amanda with a heat wrenching addition to Heroin and her journey through it all.
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.
In her article “Friends Indeed?” Joel Garreau explains that for two decades, online social networks have been touted as one of the finest flowerings of our new era. But what is the strength of ties so weak as to barely exist? Who will lend you lunch money? Who’s got your back?” Technology has overtaken individuals by social media, allowing many people to communicate online rather than having face-to-face communication. Many “relationships” begin online, and end online. Although, true relationships are rarely created fast, it gradually grows and becomes stronger and stronger over the years. However, in our immediate society this is not the case. But the questions still remains, as Joel Garreau points out “Who would lend you lunch money?” in other words, who will help you physically not online. In our impatient society, technologies influenced the way individual communicate, and that often times leads to depression, loneliness and addictions.
Pornography on the Internet is affordable, available, and abundant. One can easily find websites for viewing this type of material. Although the reports on the actual number of these sites vary, the availability and accessibility of the sites are rarely disputed. Some critics of this form of expression or form of obscenity believe that the pornography itself can cause pornography addictions. Internet pornography does not produce addicts, but rather the propensity to be a pornography addict already exists within individuals by the time they reach adulthood and sustains itself within those individuals.
Technology has a significant part in social and educational life of teens and it makes parents and experts think how teenagers become that addicted to technology today. The change in the social life of children and young generation causes to research upon technology’s usage of young people. A recent survey shows that adolescents aged between 10-18 waste an average of six to seven hours with electronic devices like computers and smart phones which cause to negative outcomes as depression, social isolation, anxiety, insomnia, and obesity(“Technology gadgets stealing kids' sleep, shows survey”). The good feeling brought on by the chemical like adrenaline, dopamine as in the gambling addiction and the joy by social networking sites, smart phones, online video games and also not-feeling alone and freedom in virtual world are the factors of technology dependence. This 24/7 online, connected community is actually a place for escaping from stress and bad emotions. The countless facilities and alternatives of virtual world attract the attention of many teens.
Pornography is becoming the most popular secret in all of America. Only 13.9% of young men don’t view pornography, and of those who do, 51% of male students and 32% of female students first viewed pornography before age 13 (Gilkerson). 21.3% of college males watch it daily or multiple times a day (Gilkerson).
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.
Technology addiction is almost similar to drug addiction. Technology is useful in many ways. Using computer, internet, cellphone, television etc. make peoples’ life easier and comfortable. Young people are the most user of it. They cannot think of a single day without use technical device. Tara Parker-Pope is an author of books on health topics and a columnist for the New York Times. In her article , she expressed that, “The International Center for Media and the Public Agenda at the University of Maryland asked 200 students to refrain from using electronic media for a day. The reports from students after the study suggest that giving up technology cold turkey not only makes life logistically difficult, but also changes our ability to connect with others.” ( Parker-Pope, “An Ugly Toll of Technology: Inpatients”). Her point is that, for the young generation it is quite impossible to give up from becoming addict...
Internet addiction is a growing problem with more and more people. The internet is much more accessible to people now than it was just a few years ago. The internet provides people with entertainment, loads of information, and an escape from everyday life, but like anything else, too much a good thing can be addictive. This paper will cover what internet addiction is, warning signs of internet addiction, problems caused by internet addiction, who develops internet addiction, preventing and treating internet addiction, and safety guidelines for internet users.
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.