Computer addiction

[Crash]

Just wondering if it is such a thing, i know quite alot of people who just sit at their computers writing long unessecary sermons just because its playing with the computer (well not quite that bad).

I myself spend quite alot of 'unnessecary' time on a computer, so i was just wondering if you guys know anything on the subject?

[Kevin Conti]

Computer use can be very addictive because of all the reinforcements that it has to offer. I would not say that they are addictive in psychiatric terms, that is, they do not result in tolerance (you dont need more use to get same feelings) and am unsure whether or not it results in psychological of physiological dependence, although it may the former.

 

Prolonged internet use does have its problems, particularly as it may result in a form of hypnosis when an individual is totally concentrated to a screen. He/she is totally focused on the conversation or what ever else he is looking at and can strain the eyes. But more importantly, in pathological terms individuals can be very irritable when interupted while using their computer or can have extreme cravings when they are away from it for a while. Furtermore, due to the lack of socialisation due to excessive net use individuals may be more prone to social related problems, such as social anxiety disorder.

 

In evolutionary terms, we are heavily inclined to release important brain rewarding neurotransmitters when a behaviour is highly pleasurable. Such behaviours in ancestoral times were heavily linked with reproductive success or social status, so we evolved mechanisms to feel depressed when a reward is took away. This highlights the discrepency between conditioning yourself to be more confident over a life time and drug talking which cheats. The same principle can be applied to net addiction and it explains why individuals often feel an irrational impulses to use their computer again after they have been away from it for a while.

 

So certainly there are pathological elements associates with excessive PC use and you could be treated for it by a psychologist.

[Crash]

Wow cheers dude

[Kevin Conti]

np dude

[biggles]

Furtermore, due to the lack of socialisation due to excessive net use individuals may be more prone to social related problems, such as social anxiety disorder.

 

I don't quite agree on this. My net addiction over the years as actually improved my social life and behaviour very much. It made me go to lots of social events and meeting lots of people I wouldn't otherwise. So it actualy had a very positive effect.

[Marz Man]

I don't quite agree on this. My net addiction over the years as actually improved my social life and behaviour very much. It made me go to lots of social events and meeting lots of people I wouldn't otherwise. So it actualy had a very positive effect.

 

Any lan parties? I so want to goto one:( lol

[Kevin Conti]

biggles: like most of psychology, it is based on statistical averages, not population actualities.

[ku]

I'm a recovering net addict. The thing about the Internet is that there is a dark side that includes violence, gore, hate, and so on. As drug addict starts with the soft stuff (marajuana) and then moves on to the hard stuff (heroin), the same seemed to happen to me with the Internet. I started with the soft stuff like CNN and Yahoo Finance, but then over time I moved on to the harder stuff like pornography, gory sites, hate sites, extremist political sites, and Fox News.

 

I frequently went to message boards related to these topics and posted there. This was all when I was 14 or 15 years old. What these deviant sites did to me is normalize these deviant behaviors, making me think that everyone behaved like this, that this behavior was commonplace, when in reality it was only the practices of a minority. My grades went down a little, I lost more friends, and then when I suspected I was addicted to the Internet, I decided to fix myself up.

 

What I did was I installed Internet Filtering Software. I installed two. One was freeware, Naomi 2.5, and another I purchased, Content Protect. I randomly generated a 20-digit number and used it as the password, wrote out two copies of the password, and then hid both of them in hard-to-reach places in my house. I censored porn, violence, hate, and adult stuff. If you tell yourself not to go to these sites you won't success because on the Internet you only need to tap a few keys and you're somewhere you know you shouldn't be. If you are to stop yourself from going to these sites you need to erect the barriers yourself. By hiding the password in hard to reach places I am increasing the barriers, increasing the costs of looking at illicit material.

 

After trying the treatment for a while I noticed that I felt kind of isolated and cut off from the world. I suspect this must have been the withdrawal symptoms people talk about. It may have also been becuase this was a self-help plan, not something recommended by a cousellor or an expert. Every now and then I go to Google and try to enter these sites but keep getting knocked back. Entering the overriding password is too hard anyway because I've buried the password under heaps of books on the other side of the house, so after a long period of failure you learn to give up and go instead to the cleaner websites.

[H2SO4]

dude

[Genecks]

I believe the term for such a computer disorder would be called infomania. However, I'm not sure.

 

...you learn to give up and go instead to the cleaner websites.

 

Or reformat. Or live-dvd knoppix.

[JesuBungle]

As drug addict starts with the soft stuff (marajuana) and then moves on to the hard stuff (heroin)' date='

[/quote']

 

Come on now, I did LSD before I smoked marijuana. The gateway drug thing is a myth.

[sabbath]

I guess I'm a computer addict.

And it's making me poorer everyday...in terms of finance.

[Psycho]

Come on now, I did LSD before I smoked marijuana. The gateway drug thing is a myth.

That is wrong what he said anyway, as you are more likly to go from smoking cigerettes to hard drugs then from smoke weed.

[alice]

Computer addict, huh? I plead...GUILTY! I am hooked to the computer but not as much as how hooked I am to the television. I can't live without it! How do I cure this addiction? Any suggestions?

[Genecks]

Computer addict, huh? I plead...GUILTY! I am hooked to the computer but not as much as how hooked I am to the television. I can't live without it! How do I cure this addiction? Any suggestions?

 

Turn it into a career.

 

Analyze the plot, characters, design, script, etc. Become a producer. I know how to make a better web layout than most people who make large amounts of money. I've seen professors at my college teach web development, and all I can do is laugh at their weak attempts to create a beautiful website. It seems many forgot the basic concepts of web development.

 

People have little understanding of the word "eyecandy".

The simple and basic design of a webpage is the best design. Easy to navigate and understand are the key concepts I keep in mind.

 

The television industry needs better shows, thespians, and realism. There's a current scare among the media because of the online media that is being created. People are becoming their own entertainers on the web. I believe Entertainment magazine showed this scare in an article.

[ecoli]

Turn it into a career.

 

exactly...

 

if you do it at work, you're not going to want to come and do it.

[Genecks]

exactly...

 

if you do it at work' date=' you're not going to want to come and do it. [/quote']

 

Goes with the old saying, "Never make your hobby into your job."

[padren]

Come on now, I did LSD before I smoked marijuana. The gateway drug thing is a myth.

 

The whole premise of the gateway drug is kinda flawed I think. I mean, if X people will choose try try heroine at some point, chances are they'll be open to trying marijuana too, and its easier to get (in some places).

 

and Ku:

 

I can't help but to wonder so I'll ask: did you ever analyze your interest in the stuff? I know addiction is real in general, and can affect one's decision making greatly, but I've always believed it is best to change what you want to do instead of throwing up stumbling blocks for oneself. If I wanted to be a vegitarian agian, I wouldn't just stop eating meat and pine for it every day - I'd go to a slaughterhouse and throw up a lot, and love tofu with a passion.

 

I have no idea what the equivelent would be, but it just seems strange to passively accept desires while blocking them instead of changing them.

 

 

Sorry, that is quite sidetracked.

 

On Topic:

I do think people have psychological and social needs that are very driving, and can be satiated by computer use, which in turn would result in a dependancy of sorts. I can't speak to the literal addiction element though.

[GutZ]

I have an anxiety disorder, I use the computer alot...

 

 

I am statistic.

 

Computers can be addictive though without those things. Funny thing is I enjoy playing games with other over the net, I guess you can be who ever you want to be on the net.

[alice]

Turn it into a career.

 

Yep. I'm currenly looking for a part time job that has something to do with the pc. But I'm not sure if I can get one. Hmm...career, eh? I actually took Information Technology for college. BTW, which course is easier, Computer Science, or Information Technology?

[Genecks]

Depends on social skills. heh.

[alice]

Depends on social skills. heh.

 

Haha. I guess it's difficult then. What have I gotten myself into? Oh well...that's just the way it is, huh?

[Genecks]

One could assume computer science is based on physics and mathematics; IT would be based on networking, fixing computers, helping people.

 

However, that was jokingly biased.

[alice]

It's pretty much the same. Whichever way I go, I'll still have a hard time. So whatever. I will have to study real hard. It's about time I get my brain working anyways.

[Pseudoswallo]

I also plead guilty. My life consists mainly of school -> computer -> meal -> computer. And most of that time is Internet useage.

Any suggestions? I can't get a job yet because I'm only 14...