Internet Addiction was originally proposed as a disorder in a satirical hoax by Ivan Goldberg, M.D., in 1995. He took pathological gambling as diagnosed by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) as his model for the description of IAD. In the course of time, Internet Addiction has increased uncontrollably. Furthermore, it will officially be listed in the worldwide manual as a mental illness in may 2013.
In consequence, Internet Addiction affects families around the world without discriminating based on ethnicity, nationality, culture, age or gender. Not even military families, who are supposed to have more disciplined lives, are exempted from this growing societal concern. As Doctor Sharon Cooper, a retired Army colonel and developmental pediatrician, has stated: "Families...need to be warned about internet addiction, because this type of addiction is more common than alcohol addiction and there is no way of knowing it, so many people may be affected without realizing it."
In addition, researchers have identified six main types of Internet Addiction. Specifically, gaming addiction, social networking, online shopping, internet gambling, web surfing, cybersex/porn addiction
Works cited: New Mental Illness, Internet Addiction, Dr Sharon Cooper
I find this interesting but is the internet to blame or is it our society. It seems almost as if technology has been to a detriment to people. It seems that most people cant disconnect from technology and enjoy the world around us.
ReplyDeleteHi Andrew, I believe we cannot blame the internet neither the society, each person living in the madness of this world is responsible for their own acts. However, there is a large percentage of people that overuse or misuse the internet, which is man's greatest invention. Internet has changed the entire planet, and has also integrated it. Nowadays, we have more availability to communicate, to negotiate, to facilitate; moreover, the Internet has the ability to enhance our society as a whole. Indeed, as I mentioned, the creators of the Internet couldn’t phantom people will become addicts to it. They created it to enhance the world. Unfortunately, it seems people prefer to invest more time on an E-life rather than a normal life. The aforementioned currently contributes to the increasing concern of many psychologists who had begun treating addictive behaviors.
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