Is Internet Addiction Real? Science Seems to Think so
December 7th 2011
Do you obsessively check your Facebook page? Look at your cell phone constantly? Play online games for days? How about compulsively looking at pornography, shop, text, chat, or gamble online? Is the internet your escape hatch? Do you get depressed, angry or show other withdrawal symptoms if you don’t have internet access for a day or more? Do you neglect your homework, family, friends or personal hygiene because you’d rather be online?
If you nodded yes to any of these questions you may want to think about whether your internet use is healthy or if you have what some people call an internet addiction or “problematic internet use” . Call it what you’d like, excessive internet use is a real problem for some users.
You might have heard about internet addiction in the news as two research teams have just published new studies in the last two weeks. In fact, the concern about internet addiction and its consequences is so high that at least 15 major research projects have been conducted this year alone in the U.S., Europe and Asia.
Once dismissed as impossible, researchers around the world are finding clear physical and psychological indicators that validate concerns of problematic internet use or addiction. Their studies add to the growing body of research that highlights why maintaining a healthy balance between time spent online, use of other media, school, sports, friends, and other commitments is critical to your wellbeing.
Here are excerpts from the two recent news stories, as well as an excerpt from a British study published in July, and a Korean study published in September that compared Internet-addicted students with non-addicted students using an IQ test.
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Lesson
Kids, age 8 - 18, now spend an average of 10 hours and 45 minutes a day, seven days a week with media .
Of those media hours, the internet takes up about half of the time. While most teens balance their internet use against other media types, school, sports, friends, and other commitments, up to 10% of youth may develop a need to be online that becomes compulsive, uncontrolled, or pathological. This type of maladaptive behavior is sometimes called internet over use, internet compulsion, or internet ‘addiction’.
Not all youth face the same risks of addiction. Kids and teens who have been uprooted from their friends, feel socially isolated, lonely, have less empathy, or are impulsive by nature are at greater risk . Other high risk attributes are youth struggling with ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), social phobia, hostility and depression .
Whether compulsive internet use fits into the formal definition of addiction, there is clear evidence that some users develop a compulsive need to be online that interferes with their daily activities, relationships, and health. This risk is higher among youth.
Based on two new research studies, Internet addiction- Neuroimaging findings and Violent Video Games Alter Brain Function in Young Men, this lesson looks into the issue of internet ‘addiction’,, how students can check their own behavior for signs of trouble, and how compulsive use could impact their lives.
Grades - Appropriate for Grades 8-12 |
Time Required - 30-45 minutes |
Key Concepts
This section outlines the key concepts covered in this lesson on internet use and abuse as well as the vocabulary words every student should understand.
Maintaining a healthy balance between time spent online, use of other media, school, sports, friends, and other commitments is critical to your wellbeing.
Up to 10% of youth , develop a need to be online that becomes compulsive, uncontrolled, or damaging to their overall mental and physical health.
Spending a lot of time online does not automatically mean you are an internet addict or have problematic internet use.
Several clear signs can indicate whether you, or a friend, are struggling to maintain a healthy balance of time online and time spent on other things.
If you are struggling with an unhealthy dependency on internet activities, there is help.
Materials & Resources
| Equipment Needed | Ability to show an online video plus paper and pencil for each student |
| Full News Article | Internet addiction- Neuroimaging findings Violent Video Games Alter Brain Function in Young Men |
| Lesson Plan |
Is the amount of time you spend on the internet healthy?
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| Lesson Presentation |
Companion Presentation
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Vocabulary
- 1. Internet ‘addiction’ or problematic internet use
- – A preoccupation with the Internet; a need for increased time spent online to achieve the same amount of satisfaction.
- 2. Behavioral addiction
- –A compulsion to repeatedly engage in an action even when that action causes serious negative consequences to the person's physical, mental, social, and/or financial well-being – like gambling, food, work, exercise, cutting, and a variety of internet-related behaviors.
Learning Activities
Write a report: |
Have students find a news article about internet addiction or problematic internet use, or have them select from the additional resources listed with this lesson and write a short report on the article or research, including their own perspective on the issue. |
Go tech free: |
The internet is a tool with fantastic opportunities, but like any tool it needs to be used appropriately and safely. Take a 24 hour technology free challenge – no internet, radio, TV, cell phone, game console or device, or computer time. Then have students either:
After the challenge, spend time in class talking about what they discovered about their internet use, and/or that of the person they interviewed. |
Professional Development
This lesson looks closely at internet addiction, or problematic internet use. You can leverage this lesson to increase our own learning by gaining a deeper understanding of one or more of these areas:
What, if any, is the correlation between internet addiction or problematic internet use, and lower performance in areas related to attention? Start with the research Preliminary study of Internet addiction and cognitive function in adolescents based on IQ tests. Park, M. H., E. J. Park, et al. (Sept. 2011). At a time when ADHD diagnoses are skyrocketing (see Code for ADHD Diagnosis: Could Your Zip Code Affect An ADHD Diagnosis?) is there a connection between this disorder and the excessive amount of time many young children spend online?
Learn to better identify students who either have problematic internet use or on the path towards problematic internet use so you can help steer them, and their parents towards resources. Start with the articles
Research your state’s cybercrime laws and pending legislation through your state’s government website. Also look at the National Conference of State Legislatures site to see a comparison of State Cyberstalking, Cyberharassment and Cyberbullying Laws.
Measure your own level of problematic internet use. While youth are at greater risk for this problem, adults are far from immune. Ask yourself the survey questions listed in the lesson, and look into working on areas that represent struggles for you.
Learn more about the topic in general. The concept of internet addiction or problematic use has been around for nearly 20 years, but until recently there was little reliable data to support the claims. In just the past year, the research findings have exploded. Read through some or all of the listed the research papers to learn as much as you can about this disorder.
Parent Tips
As parents and caregivers, understanding how to differentiate between ‘normal’ internet use and compulsive use is critically important for knowing when to seek help for concerning behavior. Internet usage naturally ebbs and flows to accommodate other activities and interests among healthy internet users, but this is markedly different than the behavior of youth who spend virtually all of their waking hours, week in and week out, behind an internet connected screen, ignoring relationships, homework, and the world.
Not all youth face the same risks of addiction. Kids and teens who have been uprooted from their friends, feel socially isolated, lonely, have less empathy, or are impulsive by nature are at greater risk . Youth struggling with ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), social phobia, hostility and depression are also at a greater risk for developing an internet addiction.
In the news this week was a new study on internet addiction, also called problematic internet use. Talking about this article, Internet addiction- Neuroimaging findings, is a great way to start a conversation regarding the importance of creating and maintaining a healthy balance between time spent online, use of other media, school, sports, friends, family time, and other commitments.
The study looked into internet addiction through brain imaging. Researchers could see visible evidence of internet addiction disorder, and that it shares the same emotional and physical profiles as substance addiction and behavioral addictions -like gambling, food, work, exercise, cutting, and a variety of internet-related behaviors.
Here are key warning signs of compulsive internet use . Ask each family member to test how well they score on the following risk points .Keep in mind that while any one sign may be concerning, multiple signs are more likely to indicate a problem.
Do you:
- Stay on the internet for much longer than intended, or not notice how much time passed while you were online?
- Get infatuated with the internet; or specific internet destinations?
- Make the decision to reduce the amount of time spent online, and then fail to achieve that reduction?
- Spend money on internet devices or online that should be used for other necessities?
- Escape into the internet to avoid responsibilities, escape painful feelings or troubling situations?
- Think frequently about the internet or an internet activity when not using it or constantly look forward to the next opportunity to be online?
- Have failed attempts to control your behavior, including aggressive behavior?
- Check messages compulsively throughout the day?
- Spend time online when you should be doing other things?
- Have a heightened sense of excitement while involved in internet activities?
- Become agitated or angry when not online or online time is interrupted?
- Prefer to spend time online rather than with friends or family?
- Feel restless when not online?
- Lie to others about the amount of time you spend online?
- “Sneak” online when no one is around?
- Feel guilty, ashamed, anxious, or depressed as a result of online actions?
- Sacrifice sleep to spend time online?
- Have physical changes like weight gain or loss, backaches, headaches, pain in arms, wrists and hands?
- Withdraw from activities you previously enjoyed?
- Feel depressed?
Now, tally up those scores and take a moment to discuss each family member’s risk profile. Are there aspects of your child’s, or your, online use that may be problematic? Talk about ways your family can improve the balance of online time and other activities. This may include adding management tools to help monitor time spent online, the sites visited and so on. It may also mean checking phone bills to see whether calls, texts or data usage is occurring at inappropriate times – for example after bedtime, or during school. Perhaps you set up ‘internet free’ times where no one uses internet tools.
If your child (or you) struggle with a less-than-healthy attachment to the internet and want to reduce your dependency, here are some recommended steps:
Identify the areas in your child’s life (or your own) that are suffering because of the amount of time spent, and the behaviors taken, online. Are grades slipping? Is your child failing to get enough sleep? Are they missing out on participating in healthy physical activities? Are they depressed?
Set specific time limits. Set an alarm to go off and end your child’s (or your own) time online when it rings. If this is a struggle, get a friend to call and chat, or meet up to help break the urge to stay online.
Set aside "internet-free" parts of the day – for students school might be a great place to start. A study from 2009 found that 25% of teen’s cell phone messages are sent during class , and both texting and cell phone ownership have skyrocketed since then.
Uninstall a game if it keeps drawing your child (or you) back in, and give the game away if that isn’t enough to prevent them from compulsive playing.
Restrict access to websites that your child compulsively visits by installing blocking or time limiting software –keep the password secret so your child can't bypass the filter.
Help your child schedule more fixed times to hang out with friends, volunteer somewhere, get a job, or start a new project.
If these steps are not enough, seek out resources for internet addiction recovery in your area.
