What is Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD)?
The World Wide Web is informative, convenient, and fun. There are varying opinions on the subject of Internet addiction. Recent reports indicate that some on-line users are becoming addicted to the Internet in the similar way that others became addicted to drugs, alcohol, or gambling, which resulted in academic failure (1,2), reduced work performance (3) and even marital discord and separation (4). As the Internet increasingly becomes part of our lives, Internet addiction disorder has received much attention. The term Internet Addiction Disorder was coined by psychiatrist Ivan Goldberg. Those who are addicted to Internet may withdraw from social and interpersonal interactions other than those on the Internet. Their family relationships and academic or occupational functioning may deteriorate Internet Addiction Disorder: Myth or Reality? Do some people have problems with spending too much time online? Sure they do. Some people also spend too much time reading, watching television, and w
What IAD is is difficult to define at this time. Research to date has been composed exclusively of exploratory surveys, which cannot establish causal relationships between specific behaviors and their cause. While surveys can help establish descriptions of how people feel about themselves and their behaviors, they cannot draw conclusions about whether a specific technology, such as the Internet, has actually caused those behaviors. Those conclusions which are drawn are purely speculative and subjective made by the researchers themselves. They cannot be supported by existing data. Do some people have problems with spending too much time online? Sure they do. Some people also spend too much time reading, watching television, and working, and ignore family, friendships, and social activities. But do we have TV addiction disorder, book addiction, and work addiction being suggested as legitimate mental disorders in the same category as schizophrenia and depression? I think not. It’s the ten
What “Internet addiction disorder” (IAD) is still difficult to define at this time. Much of the original research was based upon the weakest type of research methodology, namely exploratory surveys with no clear hypothesis or rationale backing them. Coming from an atheoretical approach has some benefits, but also is not typically recognized as being a strong way to approach a new disorder. More recent research has expanded upon the original surveys and anecdotal case study reports. However, as I will illustrate below later, even these studies don’t support the conclusions the authors claim. The original research into this disorder began with exploratory surveys, which cannot establish causal relationships between specific behaviors and their cause. While surveys can help establish descriptions of how people feel about themselves and their behaviors, they cannot draw conclusions about whether a specific technology, such as the Internet, has actually caused those behaviors. Those conclus
What “Internet addiction disorder” (IAD) is still difficult to define at this time. Much of the original research was based upon the weakest type of research methodology, namely exploratory surveys with no clear hypothesis or rationale backing them. Coming from an atheoretical approach has some benefits, but also is not typically recognized as being a strong way to approach a new disorder. More recent research has expanded upon the original surveys and anecdotal case study reports. However, as I will illustrate below later, even these studies don’t support the conclusions the authors claim…” Virtual Addiction http://www.virtual-addiction.com/ “Welcome to Virtual-Addiction.com, the web site for The Center for Internet Studies, a business dedicated to providing services, information, and resources on e-behavior and internet addiction in the workplace, our families and in the community. The Internet clearly has a role to play in today s information age and will become increasingly impor
Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD) started out as a ruse, the term coined by Dr. Ivan Goldberg in 1995, modeled on pathological gambling as per the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Despite the joke, supporters took the “disorder” seriously due to the very real obsession many people have with various online activities. Internet Addiction Disorder has subsequently taken on a life of its own, rising from mere hoax to a potential malady that many believe has roots in reality. Supporters often break down Internet Addiction Disorder into categories reflecting different types of online addictions that are consistently expressed beyond the generous limits of keen interest or dedicated hobby. Categories such as inappropriate dedication to social networking or blogging, obsessive gaming, habitual pornography, and incessant shopping are some examples. At least one researcher (and co-author of Breaking Free Of The Web: Catholics And Internet Addi
