This is my opinion on internet addiction to start out. I do believe people can become addicted to the internet, when they begin to spend so much time on it that it effects their life. This is hard to prove, because of what people argue for the reasons why they are on the internet. Also the internet is an easy access to keep other addictions alive such as, gambling, pornography, and shopping. This is where I believe internet has its true affect, by being a gateway to “heaven” of these other addictions, that plague many people around the world. Again this was my opinion on internet and its usage leading to addiction.
Many proffesionals are now saying internet addiction is becoming a rising concern, especially to americans because of how easy the access is. Sarah Kershaw the writer of “Hooked on the Web: Help Is on the Way”1, says that many mental health professionals have called these people onlineaholics. Many argue that the internet is to broad of a topic to say someone is addicted. What these professionals are saying is that the internet can be used to further other addictions, and can put a family in jeapordy.
“Obsessive internet use is a public health problem which is so serious it should be officially recognised as a clinical disorder”, according to a leading psychiatrist. This was written in a UK Newspaper called the Telegrapher2. This shows that the problem is not only being recognized in the United States, but also in other places in the world. There is no real way of telling how many people actually would have an internet addictioin, because it is not counted as a real disorder so there aren’t any records being held on the disorder. A person with internet addiction suffers from four symptoms as told in the Telegrapher2:
1. Forget to eat and sleep
2. Need more advanced technology or more hours online as they develop resistance to the pleasure iven by their current system
3. Experience withdrawal symptoms
4. More arguments, fatigue, and isolated in society.
These are all symptoms seen in other addictions as well, and in John Suler’s The Psychology of Cyberspace3 people who are addicted to the internet begin to want to be on the internet no matter what is at stake.
A lot of people argue that this is not addiction, but is just a way to build on other addictions. Well in a broad aspect John Suler3 calls this cyberspace addiction. This means that they are addicted to all the things that is on the web, being able to play a game at their fingertips, get on social sites, and also build on other addictions at the same time. The internet gives us an infinite amount of tasks we can do at once. This is becoming a concern across the world, as technology grows the use for internet becomes more and more popular. As seen on http://www.netaddiction.com/4 they have information on how to find help for the addiction.
From what I have found internet addiction disorder is becoming a real problem. Even though it is not stated in the mental health book for disorders, it is clear that psychologist and mental health professionals all believe it is a disorder.
Reference
2. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/2152972/Internet-addiction-is-a-clinical-disorder.html
Yes, I totally agree with you. Internet can make people addicted in today’s life. And also the internet is an easy access to keep other addictions alive such as, gambling, pornography, and shopping. What’s more, the internet can be used to further other addictions, and can put a family in jeopardy. As can be seen from your writing, there are four symptoms which people are suffering from. So, addicting in internet is not good for both individual and society. However, internet becomes more and more useful nowadays. Almost everyone cannot live without it. How can we avoid to addicting to it while using it? I think it is still a big problem.
ReplyDeleteBTW, I have learnt a lot in your paper.
Jingni Liu
I completely agree with you. The internet has become so accessible nowadays in every part of the world. Everything is easy access at the tip of your finger. I think that people tend to run away from social settings and become secure with a computer and the internet as thier form of social interaction. The fact that we can shop, gamble, read, play games, and so much more all from our couch or some other access point has a grave impact on individuals. We've become more comfortable inputing our feelings into a virtual world than our own. Btw..here is a link I found that has a little test for internet addiction.
ReplyDeletewww.netaddiction.com/resources/internet_addiction_test.htm
Jonathan West
I must say I really enjoyed reading your blog and I completely agree with everything you talked about. Internet addiction is the told truth that everyone chooses to deny. And with their denial they try to come up with excuses of why they are always on the internet. When they know they should be directing their attention to something that is more important. Also, with the time wasted using the Internet in a non-productive manner they could be getting a head on several things, such as homework, projects and reports.
ReplyDeleteI found it interesting in your blog that Internet addiction has not yet been added to mental health books. I think since this is becoming a major problem that very soon it will be added into the mental health books and doctors will be able to diagnose people with Internet addiction. And with the doctors being able to diagnose people with that disorder, they could in turn cut off the use of the Internet to those diagnosed with that disorder. And with that in my opinion people will begin to cut back on their unnecessary use of the Internet because they would be afraid of the consequences if they were diagnosed with Internet addiction.
Lauren Wetzel
Internet addiction is a great topic to address. It is becoming a problem for many individuals that affects their lives as well as their families. I agree that it does need to be considered an actual addiction and medical disorder. I think something that will be a help to those addicted to the internet are the new limited amounts of time or usage on Internet plans. Some companies are enforcing their clients can only access the Internet for a certain amount of MB usage depending on how much they are willing to pay per month.
ReplyDeleteLike you said, the Internet is simply a gateway of access to many other addictions. I feel it can also create additional addictions if people do not learn self control. There is more to life than what can be accessed or discovered through the Internet. I realize the Internet makes many aspects of our daily lives much easier and more efficient. However, we are not meant to spend our days gazing into the monitor.