Internet addiction disorder

Citation

(2010), "Internet addiction disorder", Health Education, Vol. 110 No. 5. https://doi.org/10.1108/he.2010.142110eag.001

Internet addiction disorder

Article Type: Internet review From: Health Education, Volume 110, Issue 5

Although not yet formally recognised as a mental illness in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition, text revision (2000), (DSM IV), internet addiction disorder, or IAD, has been formally recognised by the American Psychological Association, as a disorder that requires “treatment” of some form or other. Currently the debate on whether to include IAD in the next revision of the DSM is being strongly argued by proponents and opponents. The outcome of this debate will not be known until the fifth edition is published in 2013.

The arguments from both sides are compelling. Exactly how many hours per day can I spend on the internet before I should consider myself addicted? Many people spend a great deal of their time reading books, should we consider them as suffering from book addiction disorder? Behavioural “addictions”, unlike addictions to particular substances, will always be problematic when it comes to defining symptoms and developing “treatments”. For this reason it has been suggested that the focus should be on the behaviours and an examination of the extent to which these behaviours interfere with aspects of daily living. If a person spends so much time on the internet that their physical and mental health begins to suffer, then obviously there is a problem that needs to be dealt with, and there is a role for the health education professional.

Internet addiction is a relatively new concept and many web sites where a user might traditionally go to for advice on this type of problem, e.g. Mind, do not yet provide information on internet addiction as such.

Internet reviews typically look at the extent to which the internet can help people deal with health related issues and problems. In this review however, rather intriguingly, we are faced with an examination of whether the internet can help people cope with problems that have been brought about by use of the internet!

The Centre for Internet Addiction: www.netaddiction.com/

Perhaps a good place to start a review on IAD is by taking a test to investigate the extent to which we are currently experiencing the symptoms of Internet addiction. This is possible through this web site, Netaddiction.com, where users can find a variety of free tests to investigate the extent and nature of their possible addiction. Needless to say, there is not just one form of internet addiction, it can take a variety of forms and this web site provides a test for each of them. There is a test for cybersexual addiction to find out if you are addicted to online porn. A compulsive online gambling quiz looks at the extent to which a user might be caught up in online poker, bingo or other forms of gambling. For fans of ebay there is an online auction addictions test and for those who waste lots of time in Second Life or World of Warcraft there is a test for obsessive online gaming. The parent-child addiction test does not look at the extent to which we are addicted to our children! Rather it allows parents to evaluate the behaviour of their children’s online behaviour to see if there might be a problem. For those whose partners seem to spend an inordinately amount of time on the net, there is a partner’s addiction test that may very well confirm this. Finally there is the internet addiction test that evaluates internet addiction in general. Superficially these tests appear to have the face validity that would be expected. Unfortunately the web site does not present any other form of evidence that might suggest that these tests are anything more than entertaining diversions.

The web site has a number of interesting resources for both the lay person and the health professional. The FAQ section is particularly good with a comprehensive review of different aspects of internet addiction. There is an online bookshop as well as free articles, some of which have been published in respectable academic journals.

Being a commercial web site based in North America, it is also possible to purchase online courses for health professionals including relevant e-books. Admittedly most of the articles and books do appear to have been written by the author of the web site, but she appears to be well qualified so this need not be a criticism. For those people who feel they may benefit from counselling, this is also available, either face to face, via the telephone, or even online, by appointment.

The section designed for professionals is particularly useful and has information not only for therapists and other health professionals, but also for lawyers, businesses and schools. Each has their own section where internet addiction is discussed from their particular perspective; an interesting and worthwhile innovation.

Helpguide: http://helpguide.org/mental/internet_cybersex_addiction.htm

Helpguide is a non profit organisation based in North America and which provides a variety of health education resources including emotional health, eating disorders, stress, and of course internet addiction. The format of each resource is similar in that they provide basic information defining the condition, describing symptoms, explanations of likely causes, and then self-help advice. The web site provides a useful guide to healthy and unhealthy internet use along with a check list to aid self-evaluation. This is followed by an examination of the risk factors associated with internet addicition and the conclusion seems to be if you are shy, lonely, depresed and a teenager then you are at serious risk. A whole section is devoted to cybersex and pornography and while this is an important feature of internet addiction, it is not the only feature so it is not clear why this is the main focus of this web site.

The self-help section is particularly useful and several tools are provided to help users identify the source of their problem and thus suggest ways of dealing with it. Advice includes strenghtening support networks and coping skills, keeping a diary of internet use, setting goals for when you can use the internet, and replacing internet use with more healthy pursuits.

Finally, if all else fails, then counselling in the form of cognitive behaviour therapy, is suggested. CBT can not only help users with the basic problem of internet addicition in a straightforward and structured manner, it can also begin to help the individual deal with contributing problems, for example, anxiety and depression.

There is not a great deal to this web site, but what there is has been well designed, it has good content and is user friendly. What else could you ask for in a web site?

HealthMad: http://healthmad.com/addiction/internet-addiction-disorder/

Not quite sure why this UK-based internet site is called HealthMad unless it is the frustrating design that really will make users mad! While this web site superficilly looks quite good, just as you are reading about internet addiction, up pops a video for Puma football boots. What makes it worse, is that the user cannot easily remove this advertisement until it has run its course. If it was an advertisement for something relevant then OK, but football boots!

When the user gets into the content proper, it goes from bad to worse. Very large and very inappropriate pictures of deranged looking people who are meant to look like, presumably, internet addicts. Not only is this irrelevant as far as the content goes, it is also in extremely poor taste.

If you are interested in developing web sites to convey health education materials then you should take a few minutes to look at this web site. You will learn a great deal about poor design, how to frustrate users, the purpose of irrelevant content, and a whole host of other things you should try to avoid. Enough said!

Brainy-Child: www.brainy-child.com/article/addicted-to-net.shtml

This is an interesting web site, not least, because the content is aimed at parents who might believe their child has an internet problem. The information presented is taken from a Child Development newsletter to which parents can subscribe In this newsletter dealing with internet addiction the web site begins by pointing out that the risk of children being exposed to predators on the internet gets lots of publicity, when in fact the risk of internet addiction is probably far greater.

The practical guidance offered to parents is very good as well as being measured. The internet for today’s child is rather like the coffee bar of yester year. It is somewhere where they can hang out with their friends away from the prying eyes of adults. This is deemed acceptable as long as the relationships the child has with others are not confined to the internet.

The web site encourages parents to get involved with their children’s cyber acivities, just as they might with real world activities. Sound advice, though whether children would welcome this is another matter!

Other advice, such as negotiating internet access time, or locating the family computer in a public place, all make sense. Finally it is suggested that parents should treat the internet as they would any other information source their children were using. Whether it be television, radio, or even books, parents should always know what their children are accessing, and, where necessary. set limits on the type of information being accessed.

While not providing masses of information, the particular approach of this web site, with the focus being on parental responses to the behaviour of their children, is interesting and represents a useful resource for health education professionals.