Internet Addiction

Internet Addiction is a problem more common in society as Internet usage is increasing. The prevalence of Internet use worldwide is increasing. Along with the benefits the Internet brings, problems of excessive Internet use is becoming apparent. As a result, along with drug and alcoholic addictions nowadays, there is one more вЂ" Internet addiction, last but not least. The opinions on the methods for the solution vary, because the problem was not studied enough. One of the solutions is to attend support groups and get the professional help. Some individuals with strong will power might be able to get rid of the addiction by themselves, understanding that this is a problem, which has to be solved in order to have a normal life.

There are varying opinions on the subject. Some say that the Internet can be addicting to the point that it disturbs one's life and the lives of those around him. Others say that there is no such thing as Internet Addiction-- getting pleasure out of a computer is not the same as getting pleasure from cocaine or any other drug. In his column in Harvard Mental Health Letter, Dr. Michael Craig Miller proves that there is an argument about defining Internet addiction as a new mental disorder. According to him, “the presence of other mental disorders among potential addicts is the rule rather than exception. Disorders of mood, anxiety, impulse control, attention, and personality are common. For all these reasons, it is difficult to call “Internet addiction” as a unified disorder” (8).

The growing popularity of the Internet has given way to a new disorder associated with it. Internet Addiction Disorder is becoming more and more popular as more people are finding themselves attached to their computers. Time is not the sole indicator of whether someone is suffering from Internet Addiction Disorder. Many people have to spend more time online than others. For example, some jobs demand people to be on-line for research purposes. College students have to spend a great deal of time on-line also; it may be for research purposes or for some other reason. The Internet is becoming more easily accessible with school, colleges, and public libraries all going on-line. Many college students now use the Internet as part of their educational tools, but they are not addicted. When the internet usage is negatively disrupting any major areas of the person’s life including social, financial, and physical or mental it is one of the first sights and symptoms of Internet addiction.

There are many other indicators of Internet addiction. Brian D. NG and Peter Weimer-Hastings in their research paper “Addiction to the Internet and Online Gaming” prove that Internet addiction is not studied enough. Early researches illustrated that addicted computer users were mainly male introverts, but a few years later absolutely different results were revealed. According to it, dependent users were primarily middle-aged females on home-computers, and anyone with Internet access could become addicted (110). Most of these peoples` addictions stem from using the Internet as a way of socialization. It can be anything from using you computer for e-mail, chat, discussion forums, or on-line games, such as MUDs. In his article “What we know and the difference it makes” Kevin Kruger illustrates some interesting numbers based on recent surveys about Internet’s role in students’ life. According to it, “a full 65 % of student surveyed report being regular game players”. Besides that, close to half of them agreed that gaming keeps them from studying and 9 % admitted that their main motivation for playing games was to avoid studying”(103).

Even though Internet Addiction Disorder is increasing, some people do not see it as a problem. Finding a reason for Internet addiction can be as hard as finding a reason for smoking addiction. According to Aleksey Petrov, psychology teacher in Belarusian State University, there are a couple of reasons that are obvious for some addicts, such as:

a) The power of instant access to all sorts of information and all kinds of people is a positive that can be overused.

b) A different kind of community that can draw people who tend to "shy out" in the real world because this new virtual community does not require the social skill that real life does, all you have to do is be good on the keyboard.

c) Adopting new personas and playing your favorite kind of personality is not hard when others cannot see or hear you.

d) Last but not least is the fascination with technology. (3 Oct. 2007)

Group counseling appears to be one of the solutions for treating addictions. Millions of recovering addicts have experienced success from attending 12-ster support groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous, etc. Several groups of people created the same kind of support groups dedicated to help people who suffer from Internet Addiction Disorder. Nevertheless, not everyone supports this method, emphasizing that in order to get rid of Internet addiction has to use the Internet, because many of such support groups are providing on-line treatment.

However, the main key to getting rid of, or even avoiding, any type of addiction is to understand the basic elements of the addiction. Once a person understands these elements, he/she will have a better chance of overcoming the addiction or even not getting it at all. Although for the people who are already “hooked” it is almost impossible to realize all the danger of their situation. In this case, family attention and support are very important.

As Petrov conducted in his interview, “all people who are addicted [to anything] have some degree of denial. Without denial, most addictions would not have become established in the first place” (3 Oct. 2007). Denial can take many forms. At the milder extremes, a person may believe "I can handle this problem whenever I decide to do so". The fact that one has a problem is at least acknowledged. At the other extreme, denial often takes the form of: "What problem? I do not have a problem.”

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