01/25/2010 3:00 am
Culture
7 Signs You're an Internet Addict, by Christine L. Hohlbaum
The Power of Slow author on how to diagnose a digital addiction -- and ways to kick the habit. (Read this, and then step away from the computer.)
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What else are you doing while reading this? Shopping on Zappos? Checking your e-mail? Tweeting? The World Wide Web is both a blessing and a curse. It has revolutionized countless aspects of our lives and makes working from anywhere in the world both intriguing and possible. The Internet can be a fun, interactive, community-building and fascinating cosmos. It can also eat up more of your time than you realize as you "quickly" surf the Internet for something, only to bounce errantly from one website to the next. I am guilty of it. You might be, too. We are entangled in the Web like rose tendrils on a lattice.
According to a recent social media addiction study by Retrevo, almost one third of those surveyed under age 35 admitted to checking their social media pages such as Twitter and Facebook more than ten times a day. Thirty-six percent of the 35-and-under group stated they update their status right after having sex. It may be healthier than having a cigarette, but is it normal? Forty percent in this same age group admitted to updating their profiles while driving (which definitely isn’t safe). This isn’t to say that older generations aren’t falling victim to Facebook syndrome. In 2009, the fastest growing demographic on Facebook was no other than the 55-and-over crowd.
Post-coital tweets and obsessive Facebook checking are only the tip of the iceberg, however. As more and more adults go online (it is 80 percent of the U.S. adult population at present), Internet addiction has become a more prevalent issue. According to the American Psychiatric Association, a proper diagnosis of Internet Addiction Disorder requires that three or more of the following symptoms must be present over any given 12-month period.
- Your tolerance level increases while the level of satisfaction diminishes. You need more and more time on the Internet to get the same kick.
- You experience two or more withdrawal symptoms developing within days to one month after reducing or stopping your online time. These symptoms then cause distress or impair your ability to interact socially.
- The only way to alleviate these symptoms is to use the Internet.
- You use the Internet more often, and for longer, than you intended.
- You spend a big chunk of your day or night on Internet-related activities.
- You give up important social, occupational or recreational activities to be online instead.
- You risk the loss of a significant relationship, job, educational or career opportunity because of your excessive Internet usage.
Like television, the Internet has a way of drawing you in and holding your attention. Other signs of a true digital addiction include severe weight loss or gain from hours of Internet surfing, nervousness, irritability and insomnia. What can we do about our digital dilemma?
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I like your answer BittsC. I’m not addicted yet either, and I don’t think I will be. I only spend a few hours a day on the Internet. It comes in handy for looking things up and it’s a good way to keep in touch with people you don’t have time to talk on the phone to often. But for some, it is an addiction. Moderation is the answer for everything these days.
It’s about the news and other info for you and me, Deber, because we like to be informed. But updating Facebook while driving? Seems like a lot of (especially younger) folks are just addicted to idle surfing and constant socializing via the Web.
Another factor is probably this overwhelming multitasking urge in our culture lately. It’s as if we are not happy or question our own worth if we’re not "busy" every second. Idle web-surfing is not productive, but it may make people feel like they’re "doing" something.
FWIW, in my travels it seemed that Europe, the Middle East, and Latin America don’t have the same frantic pace we do - they definitely safeguard their leisure time or at least pace themselves. It drives Americans crazy because we feel like they are slow and we "never get anything done" with them (not true, it just feels that way). When you work with them, they FORCE you to slow down. Far East, not so much. They are more like us that way. Wonder how those places are faring in Internet addiction rates…
LilaKuh ~ interesting about the Middle East. I’ve never been farther East than Turkey, but I’d say the pace of life varies, depending on people’s relationship with time. In the West, we tend to value speed, quantity over quality. I’d be interested to know about Internet addiction rates elsewhere, as well.
Don’t be fooled however. China, one of the fastest growing economies on the planet, was one of the first to detect this disorder. My research shows Seattle (no wonder!) opened its first Internet addiction facility recently.
Thanks for joining the conversation!
I think in our rushing around, we tend to come across as caring only about ourselves, and are seen as not treating others as real people, just… tools. Part of slowing down is taking a little time for human interactions and your business interactions will go farther, faster.
When I was in Saudi Arabia, we sometimes had to go to local offices for contracted services. We US types wanted to go in, state our business, and be done, as you would do in the US. But no. FIRST you have to sit and have tea or coffee and make friendly conversation, and they expect you will NOT mention your business. Business comes 30 minutes or an hour later. The hardest lesson to learn was that you get things done much faster there by going slower, relaxing, and making friends.
In Latin America, one incident comes to mind with my Dad - he was asking directions and the man just frowned at him. Dad thought something was wrong with his Spanish and rephrased the question. The man answered, "What. No ‘Good morning? How are you doing?’ You just want me to give you directions, and that’s it?" Again… you get things done faster by taking a couple of extra minutes to slow down and treat people like people, not service-dispensers.
Since the Internet is so quick-response/instant gratification, I can only imagine that US Internet addicts will find it even harder to get along in other cultures.