Internet addiction, while not yet recognized by the government as a legitimate condition, is becoming more widespread as the number of electronic devices with internet capability continue to increase in number. As more and more people have access to the internet through cell phones and other portable electronic devices, it is far easier for people to fall victim to one of the five types of internet addictions.
The first type of internet addiction and the most widespread is the Cybersexual addiction. With over 4.2 million web pages and ease of access to a variety of sites, it is not surprising that people can develop this form of addiction. Sites containing "adult content" make up over 12% of all internet content worldwide. Studies have shown that more men are more susceptible than women to developing this form of addiction.
The second type of internet addiction is the Cyber Relational addiction. This encompasses people who are addicted to online dating sites, internet messaging, chat rooms, and of course, social interaction sites like Facebook. Now there's never a need to pick up the phone and call someone, or sit at your computer typing away on your keyboard. Now you can bang away on the tiny keys on your phone or hope that your fingers don't hit the wrong keys on your touchpad as you can easily communicate with people on your smartphone. If you can't live without Facebook and spend all your time away from it thinking about what you could post or what your friends are doing, there's a good chance that you suffer from Cyber Relational Addiction.
The next type of internet addiction is the Net Compulsion Addiction. More websites appear all the time dedicated to some form of e-commerce, whether they sites for online auctions, online shopping, and online trading. One click shopping is a wonderful thing, but the convenience and ease of shopping for almost anything online certainly makes it easier for people to develop these types of addictions. Also with the use of smartphones, it is now possible to perform these activities from almost anywhere.
Another type of internet addiction is the addiction to Online Gambling or Gaming. World of Warcraft is an extremely popular online computer game with over 8.5 million players worldwide. It is a role playing game allowing you to create a character and have a second life in an vast interactive online world where you can meet, talk to, and battle millions of other gamers. It can apparently be such an addictive game that people have had jobs dedicated to managing other computer gamers characters when the addicts themselves must be away from their PCs. An internet connection also lets hundreds of thousands of gamers across the country or across the globe connect with each other at any given time to play online interactive games with or against each other like Call of Duty or Madden Football.
The final type of internet addiction is the known as the Information Overload addiction. People who suffer from this type of addiction are ones who just can't get enough of all the information, news, and celebrity gossip there is to read on the internet. If you want to find out which celebrity is involved in the latest scandal, it's no longer necessary for people to read the magazine covers at the check out lines. You can even follow your favorite celebrity's every move or word by following them on Twitter. Of course there's also information and web pages dedicated to nearly anything the mind can imagine, as more and more web pages are created every day. It is no longer necessary to turn on the news or open a newspaper to find out what is going on in the world, you simply can log on to any number of sites and have thousands of articles about all sorts of world events at your fingertips.
Just because you log like to go on Facebook doesn't necessarily mean that you suffer from a Cyber Relational addiction, nor does shopping on Amazon.com mean you suffer from a Net Compulsion addiction. It's the people who sacrifice their responsibilities, ignore their families, and just can't live without being online 24/7 who suffer from internet addiction. There's absolutely nothing wrong with being on the internet and enjoying all the internet has to offer, it's just to important that sometimes too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. If you or someone you know suffers from one of these types of internet addiction and you want to seek help, you can call the Addiction Help Center at 877-259-5635.
(http://www.livestrong.com/article/130468-types-internet-addiction/)
(http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/02049/types.htm)
The first type of internet addiction and the most widespread is the Cybersexual addiction. With over 4.2 million web pages and ease of access to a variety of sites, it is not surprising that people can develop this form of addiction. Sites containing "adult content" make up over 12% of all internet content worldwide. Studies have shown that more men are more susceptible than women to developing this form of addiction.
The next type of internet addiction is the Net Compulsion Addiction. More websites appear all the time dedicated to some form of e-commerce, whether they sites for online auctions, online shopping, and online trading. One click shopping is a wonderful thing, but the convenience and ease of shopping for almost anything online certainly makes it easier for people to develop these types of addictions. Also with the use of smartphones, it is now possible to perform these activities from almost anywhere.
Another type of internet addiction is the addiction to Online Gambling or Gaming. World of Warcraft is an extremely popular online computer game with over 8.5 million players worldwide. It is a role playing game allowing you to create a character and have a second life in an vast interactive online world where you can meet, talk to, and battle millions of other gamers. It can apparently be such an addictive game that people have had jobs dedicated to managing other computer gamers characters when the addicts themselves must be away from their PCs. An internet connection also lets hundreds of thousands of gamers across the country or across the globe connect with each other at any given time to play online interactive games with or against each other like Call of Duty or Madden Football.The final type of internet addiction is the known as the Information Overload addiction. People who suffer from this type of addiction are ones who just can't get enough of all the information, news, and celebrity gossip there is to read on the internet. If you want to find out which celebrity is involved in the latest scandal, it's no longer necessary for people to read the magazine covers at the check out lines. You can even follow your favorite celebrity's every move or word by following them on Twitter. Of course there's also information and web pages dedicated to nearly anything the mind can imagine, as more and more web pages are created every day. It is no longer necessary to turn on the news or open a newspaper to find out what is going on in the world, you simply can log on to any number of sites and have thousands of articles about all sorts of world events at your fingertips.
Just because you log like to go on Facebook doesn't necessarily mean that you suffer from a Cyber Relational addiction, nor does shopping on Amazon.com mean you suffer from a Net Compulsion addiction. It's the people who sacrifice their responsibilities, ignore their families, and just can't live without being online 24/7 who suffer from internet addiction. There's absolutely nothing wrong with being on the internet and enjoying all the internet has to offer, it's just to important that sometimes too much of a good thing can be a bad thing. If you or someone you know suffers from one of these types of internet addiction and you want to seek help, you can call the Addiction Help Center at 877-259-5635.
(http://www.livestrong.com/article/130468-types-internet-addiction/)
(http://library.thinkquest.org/06aug/02049/types.htm)
this is interesting! I didnt realize that they actually classify addictions into these difference categories. I dont think it will be much longer until internet addiction is actually a recognized medical condition.
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