Technology and internet addiction Ways to recognize it and recover from it
Internet addiction is a growing threat for children and adults worldwide. Learn more about why internet addiction exists, what causes, how it's assessed and treated, and what parents can do to help prevent or reduce addictive behaviors.
“Internet Addiction” is a growing problem. As more individuals gain internet access every year, the number of people becoming obsessed with and then addicted to a digital lifestyle is increasing as well. Internet addiction shares a lot of similarities to other addictions, and like other addictions, can also be treated. This guide will help you understand what internet addictions can look like, and how they can be treated.
Defining Internet Addiction
In 2012, popular satire news website The Onion posted a fake video news report: “Brain-Dead Teen, Only Capable Of Rolling Eyes And Texting, To Be Euthanized.”
The video amusingly dramatizes the slow degradation of “Caitlin,” a once energetic and active young girl whose brain has succumbed to lifelessness amidst texting and social media usage (and, one would assume, the general malaise of being a teenage girl). Her doting yet troubled parents have decided to take the most loving step they can consider: euthanasia. As the fake doctor in the clip states:
“Her eyes may flutter a bit, or she may murmur: ‘Are you for real killing me right now?’, but then the struggle will finally be over.”
The Onion is well known for its biting humor, but also, in a similar fashion to television’s Saturday Night Live, for the observational intelligence of its satire. In this case, the site hits fairly close to home for many who have dealt with technology and internet addiction, or who have family members currently struggling with this growing problem. Although real internet addiction rarely, if ever, results in such a dramatic effect as The Onion’s notably hyperbolic example, its consequences and impact on relationships and quality of life are often deeply felt.
That said, the debate over whether internet addiction is a legitimate disorder has yet to be decided, at least officially in Western countries. The American Psychological Association, for example, does not list internet, technology, or social media disorders in its most recently updated Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V), although it does give internet gaming addiction a nod. However, a growing number of Asian countries officially consider these addictions legitimate, including China, which officially classified internet addiction in 2008.
Despite disagreements about the efficacy of internet addiction claims and research, many medical professionals, including a number of psychologists, sociologists, and psychiatrists, currently do consider internet addiction–also referred to as problematic internet use (PIU), or internet addiction disorder (IAD)–as legitimate a disorder as any other addiction and worthy of just as much concern and attention.
While that debate still rages on, the number of individuals whose lives are tangibly affected by internet and technology overuse continues to swell. One 2014 study from the University of Hong Kong suggested that as many as 420 million people worldwide suffer from internet and technology addictions of some form. While others questioned the reach of that study, numerous examples continue to emerge regarding this issue, especially among younger generations.
Observations and studies point to the fact that younger generations are being brought up using the internet, mobile devices, and social media during their most formative years where habits are ingrained in the brain’s chemistry. However, counter to perceived logic, it may be that previous generations, in particular, Generation X, may be more likely to develop technology addictions than younger ones.
As with most addictions, there’s no one type of addict. The addiction will look different from person to person, and vary in just how deeply it impacts someone’s life. However, there are ways to identify whether technology and internet addictions actually exist in someone’s life, with observable negative consequences. Furthermore, there now exists a large body of actionable ways to combat these addictive behaviors that may help those suffering recover from the harm addictions can cause.
What are technology and internet addictions?
Internet and other technology addictions can cover several categories, and fit into several definitions. Here, we’ll provide a broad definition of “technology addiction,” and parse this into smaller chunks that better define internet addiction, smartphone (or mobile phone) addiction, and social media addiction.
Technology addiction: high-level definition
“Technology addiction” can be broadly defined as an inability to control one’s technology use due to a dependence developed through emotional, psychological, social, environmental, and biological factors. This means that an individual may have difficulty with impulse control when it comes to technology usage, be it the internet, gaming, texting, smartphones, social media, or otherwise.
The above definition is purposefully broad to align “technology addiction” with the more general definition of addiction as provided by the American Psychological Association (APA). The APA defines addiction as: “a chronic disorder with biological, psychological, social and environmental factors influencing its development and maintenance.”
The APA goes on to explain that addiction has a significant genetic component, with roughly half of one’s risk for developing an addiction coming from genetic history. Development of that addiction then occurs based on the factors mentioned above each playing a role to varying degrees. All addictions are strongly developed through biological and psychological factors, however. The addictive behaviors begin to take hold due to the brain providing a chemical and emotional “reward” for the behavior, thus leading individuals to return to and more actively seek out that behavior. Simply put, this is a form of conditioning.
Socially, these addictions may develop following consistent peer or family pressures where such behavior is seen as socially acceptable or even required, or environmentally, where access to the addicting-causing medium may be easy, thus leading to a quick reward and limiting an individual’s ability to manage impulse control successfully.
It is easy to see, then, why the broader definition of addiction can be applied to the more specific “technology addiction,” and provides a good argument for why technology addictions exist and develop in the first place. Technology is often associated with and used variously for different types of entertainment which provide an emotional and chemical reward doled out by the brain. When this reaction is combined with the social acceptance of technology use of certain types, followed by increasingly easier-to-access technologies and the increasing sophistication of mobile devices, it’s hard to overstate why technology addictions can arise so easily.
Internet addiction defined
Where internet addiction differs from the larger concept of technology addiction is in the very specific requirement for internet access. Internet addiction can fall directly under the umbrella of technology addiction, while itself being the tree for other types of technology addictions that exist solely because of internet access.
Internet addiction has several different names, including “compulsive internet use” (CIU), “internet overuse,” “problematic internet use” (PIU), and “internet addiction disorder” (IAD). Of these, IAD and PIU are the more common terms. However, as stated earlier, the APA and other professional medical associations of note do not officially classify internet addiction as a disorder. As a result, no single term exists to unify the concept.
Internet addiction is highlighted by an individual’s uncontrollable compulsion to utilize the internet. For such individuals, internet use of various sorts triggers the reward center of the brain, flushing the body with chemicals such as dopamine, serotonin, or even adrenaline, depending on the activity.
An article in Financial Times notes that researchers have outlined five specific types of internet addiction: computer games, gambling and shopping, pornography, web surfing, and online relationships. While helpful, it is increasingly difficult to quantify the subject in such a way, as the number of activities one can obsessively turn to that require internet connectivity only increase over time. Valiant Recovery, an addiction recovery organization, also lists out five types that are similar to, but broader than, the categories mentioned above, lending weight to the idea that internet addiction is still a somewhat poorly defined area of study.
All other types of addiction we’ll be discussing are subsets of internet addiction, as they would not exist without an internet connection.
Smartphone addiction defined
Smartphone addiction is highlighted by an individual’s obsessive and compulsive need to use or hold a smartphone or other mobile device. While the hallmark of this addiction tends to be very visual and physical (e.g., it’s easy to see when an individual has difficulty putting away a device), it often goes unnoticed as smartphone use has become far more socially acceptable in an increasing number of contexts.
Like other forms of addiction, smartphone addiction exists due to pleasure centers of the brain rewarding smartphone use. In some cases, anxiety can arise in addicted individuals when the device is not present, and consequently, the very presence of the device may serve to add a level of comfort or feeling of security. Indeed, some researchers have even proposed a new disorder: “Smart-loss anxiety disorder,” to describe the psychological impact and coping mechanisms that exist after the loss of one’s smartphone
It becomes easy for addicted individuals to justify smartphone addiction, particularly due to the many valuable uses of a smartphone. Whether directly communicating with others through text or voice, looking up information or directions, or even reading eBooks, the many ways a smartphone can be used make it increasingly necessary in a 21st-century environment, thereby making it easier to become addicted to its use and harder to disengage from its use.
More broadly in this area, smartphone addiction is akin to “information addiction,” or separately, closer to “technology addiction,” as those with a smartphone addiction are likely to use the device to provide themselves with constant sensory input through different types of media that may or may not require internet access.
Social media addiction defined
Social media addiction is perhaps the easier of these topics to define. With social media addiction, the same reward centers of the brain are aroused, but social media is the sole avenue for the addiction. The reason why social media can become an addiction resides in three key areas: social interactions and relationships; positive responses, and encouragement; and information acquisition. All of these areas could be seen as rewards in and of themselves, and all exist on social media platforms, making social media, in particular, a strong motivator for addiction.
Social media users can easily become addicted to gaining “likes” and reshares, as this results in positive emotions on the part of the user. Users will return to the behaviors and actions on social media that result in likes and shares, and addicts, in particular, will learn to curate their posts to increase the number of likes and shares they receive. This type of behavior is a noticeably strong sign of addiction.
The hit Lady Gaga song “Applause” is a good example of a pop song that, among many things, speaks to the drive toward emotional attention seeking that exists in a social-media-driven society. Given that a large social media network or following provides anyone with a wide audience, and many people are equally on social media with some regularity, making posts to gain likes and shares can result in an almost immediate emotional reward.
The ease with which one can get that reward, and the lengths individuals might go to get it, is why social media addiction is particularly concerning, especially for children and teenagers, and especially when it leads to risky behaviors.
Are technology addictions really a problem?
Whether or not technology addictions are problematic somewhat resides in the continuing argument over whether they’re real “addictions” over simply “bad habits,” and whether, even if they are addictions, they’re actually of the type one should be concerned about. In a 2011 opinion article published in The New York Times, Virginia Heffernan wrote of one self-described internet addict, “The Internet as Gabriela uses it simply is intellectual life, and play. She’s just the person I’d want for a student, in fact — or a friend, or a daughter.” In Heffernan’s perception, internet addiction is not necessarily bad or harmful. From her perspective, the negative labeled exists mostly because technology addictions are not as highbrow as other pursuits, such as opera, theater, or reading.
However, some chemical and behavioral addictions are universally accepted as harmful. Alcoholism, hard drug addictions (such as heroin or cocaine), and gambling addictions are always considered a clear and present danger for the addicts and their families. For more subtle behavioral addictions such as smartphone, internet, or social media addictions, the direct impact on others and the addict is often less pronounced but still follows very similar patterns as other addictions.
It’s clear from many case studies and examples that these addictions can have realistic and sometimes painful consequences. Just a quick search through the Huffington Post, for instance, results in dozens of articles on the subject, with many writers identifying a distinct improvement to their quality of life when trying to cut out the addiction-causing technology.
“Does Facebook Make You Depressed?” asks Dr. Perpetua Noa in a 2016 article. While going back and forth on the issue (a yes-no of sorts), she states, “if you find yourself planning agendas, holidays and meals to revolve around what you can post on social media, perhaps ask yourself if this really satisfies you. Because many have confided about how empty it feels.” Her statement points to something many recent studies, including one from the University of Pittsburgh, have been observing: Heavy social media and other increased technology use are heavily linked to higher rates of depression.
Cause and effect arguments aside, there are other problematic associations with technology addictions as well. That list includes sleep deprivation, noticeable degradation of brain functions and structure (gray matter atrophy, reduced cortical thickness, loss of processing efficiency, compromised white matter integrity), social isolation, and a decrease in productivity, among other issues. A 2016 article in The Washington Post also explored the significant consequences that these addictions are having on younger generations, including job loss.
Despite its unofficial status, most people and an increasing number of health professionals now acknowledge internet, social media and smartphone addictions as real and impactful. Furthermore, mounting evidence indicates that there are sometimes severe negative consequences to leaving these addictions unaddressed.
To place more details to the matter, those who suffer technology-related addictions:
Are more likely to have interpersonal and anxiety issues
Are more likely to have health issues and suffer depression
Are more likely to have multiple addictions (e.g., internet gaming addicts are also more likely to have pornography addictions)
Are more likely to have strained family relationships
Are less likely to be self-directed and more likely to have issues with impulse control
Are more likely to experience stressful life events
Are more likely to self-harm
Are more likely to struggle academically
Are more likely to have low self-esteem
As potentially circumstantial effects and behavior patterns begin to emerge, it becomes harder to align oneself with the idea that there is only a correlative relationship between technology addictions and significant, impactful lifestyle and health consequences. Indeed, despite having no formal definition, it is likely that the APA will include more versions of technology addiction in the next revision of the DSM (DSM-VI), beyond just internet gaming addiction. Even with internet gaming addiction, the DSM-V only recommends further study. The DSM was last updated in 2013 and is currently taking feedback from the medical community on what to include in the next (currently planned, but undated) update.