Mum, I want to stop. I need to stop. But I’m scared of upsetting people.” I knew Connor’s three-year addiction to computer gaming had been ruining his life. But until he made that decision to change, four years ago, there had seemed little any of his family could do to help. His obsession with living in a virtual world was consuming his life, and destroying his education. It had left him without real-life friends — or the skills needed to acquire them. It had driven his father and me to despair. (“My Son was Addicted to the Internet” 1) Internet addiction should be considered a mental disorder to get help for people who need it. In order to cure Internet Addiction Disorder, we must know what it is, how people get it, the symptoms, and how it is cured. We need to learn how many people suffer from the disorder, and what steps to take to cure it. Internet Addiction, which many may know by the terms computer addiction, online addiction, or even Internet addiction disorder is when an individual has impulse-control problems. There are currently five types of internet addiction. The first type is Cybersex Addiction. This is when an individual compulsively uses the internet to watch pornography and go in adult chat rooms. The main effect of cybersex addiction is that it negatively harms the person’s real life relationships. The second of internet addiction is type is Cyber-Relationship Addiction. This is where a person is addiction to Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, or other sites. People with this type are so addicted that they lose connection with real life friends and family (“Internet & Computer Addiction” 1). Another type of addiction is Net Compulsion. this is when someone gets so addicted to online shopping and gambling... ... middle of paper ... ...ternet use. Cognitive-behavioral therapy gives a step-by-step way to stop compulsive Internet behaviors and change viewpoints about Internet, smartphones, and computer use. Therapy may also help with stress, anxiety, or depression. If Internet addiction is affecting someone’s partner directly, as with cybersex, or online affairs, marriage counseling can help them work through their problems. Marriage counseling can help reconnect with partners if they have been using the internet for most of their social needs. Internet addicts could also go to group support (“Internet & Computer Addiction” 1). In conclusion, Internet addiction is often overlooked. There are five different types of Internet addictions. There are different sign and symptoms for each of the addiction, and they can all be cure. Therefore, Internet addiction should be considered a mental disorder.
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
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.
Weinstein, Aviv, and Michel Lejoyeux. "Internet Addiction or Excessive Internet Use." American Journal of Drug & Alcohol Abuse 36.5 (2010): 277-283. Academic Search Premier. Web.
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
According to Internet Live Stats, 40% of the world’s population has access to the internet today. In 1995, this number was less than 1%. The first billion was reached in 2005, the second billion in 2010, and the third billion in 2014. With these overwhelming numbers, it can be presumed that having access to the Internet has never been so easy. In fact, we are so conditioned to this technology that most of our tasks depend on it to be done. Nowadays, most of the school work is done online and when looking for a job a lot of times it is required to be computer savvy. Of course the internet is not all bad, but becoming so dependent on this can surely have severe consequences. CNN released an article evaluating internet addiction. According to this article, “A 2014 study determined that about 16% of 18- to 25-year-olds are involved in compulsive Internet use” (CNN, Adair). Psychologist Catherine Steiner-Adair further explains:
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.
There have been many studies performed to research the idea of Internet addiction. It is just like any other addiction, including gambling, alcoholism, and eating disorders, and all of which destroy families in one way or another. Experiments created by psychologists and sociologists to explain the addiction resemble those of pathological gamblers described in the DSM-IV.[1] Using that information, a survey was made to determine if users have Internet addiction. The questionnaire includes eight questions such as “Do you feel the need to use the Internet with increasing amounts of time in order to achieve satisfaction?” and “Do you use the Internet as a way of escaping from problems or of relieving a dysphoric mood?” Participants who answered yes to five or more of the questions were considered addicted Internet users.
A lot of research has gone into understanding the real impacts of technology in people’s lives. The impact of Internet on our life becomes more and more significant and undeniable. Life without Internet is definitely very troublesome and inconvenient. However some do think that this technology is more of a nuisance than useful. Even more complaints have come forward about the Internet disrupting humanity. Over the last two decades people have seen time and again complaints from parents that their children play video games 24/7 or relationships that have been ruined because of a partners inability to use technology in moderation (i.e. Technological addictions). Technological addictions are categorized under behavioral addictions and involve human-technology interaction. They can be passive (e.g. television) or active (e.g. computer games) Internet Addiction does have the core components of any addiction and will be expounded on in this
In this case, this theory is true but this addiction could be even more destructive than an average drug addict if we do not try to lower this addiction rate. Our generation is suggesting that it is okay to focus more on video games than school work and that it is common if you spend hours on a computer chair that you will develop blood clots in your legs. The message that we demonstrate to the next generation will lead them to a non-social and dangerous habits. The Greg Beato clarifies that if we continue these behaviors we will “Become introverted philanderers by now, isolating ourselves in the virtual Snuggie of World of Warcraft by day and stepping out by night to destroy our marriages with our latest hook-ups”. Not only will the next era become more introverted, but they will lack certain behavior that we gain in our childhood. They will not fully grow up and won 't proceed the skills that obtain in our child development stages. The internet is dangerous because of how addictive it can be but if we are not careful the internet can leak out inappropriate images that the innocence can view. Another alarming aspect is if the APA does add this disorder to the DSM the consequences will become aggressive. Beato states that “People who suffer from Internet addiction disorder will receive protection under the Americans With Disabilities
Researchers are seeking a clarification of the term “Internet addiction.” It is debatable whether the compulsive use of the Internet should
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 the modern world internet access is a vital part of everyday life. It is important for education, and is a necessary skill for those entering the job markets of today. The internet is highly entertaining and informative. These qualities make the internet an attractive escape from the stress of everyday life. People can enter a different world and make the problems of the real world disappear. Anything is possible on the internet. Internet addiction has the same symptoms as an addition to drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, or caffeine. When someone becomes addicted to the internet they will have increasing tolerance to the amount of time they spend online, withdrawal, mood changes between when online and off, and there will be an interruption of social relationships and activities. People with an addiction will need more time online to be happy. When access to the internet is not available people will show signs of anxiety, depression, irritability, trembling hands, and restlessness.
I want to start off by addressing the issue about the internet becoming an addiction. What does addiction mean and how do I know if I am addicted? Addiction is being hooked or obsessed with something specific in this case it could be a particular site like Facebook or Twitter. You know you’re addicted when you can’t stop tweeting or updating your status and it becomes a habit that you continue on a daily basis. Keeping up with electronics wasn’t considered as special as it is now where updating ourselves with new electronics or apps have become a trend. Now if we are disconnected from the internet we...
James Fearing, Ph.D. Computer / Internet Addiction - Self Diagnosis. n.d. 25 April 2009. .
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...