Internet addiction is a serious problem these days and will only become more so as the Internet continues to evolve at a rapid pace. Can humanity keep up? If you don’t think Internet addiction is a problem, we’ll have another post on that later.
Internet Addiction
For now, I want to offer some tips to help prevent Internet addiction. Whether you use these for yourself or a “friend” who is addicted to the Internet (Farmville addiction anyone?)
ZenHabits – a very cool site, btw – has 8 Practical Tips to Cure Your Internet ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder.)
Offline Day. Try to cure your Internet Addiction by having, at least once a month, a “completely offline” day. From the time you wake up till the time you go to sleep, avoid any contact with the Internet. No PDA, no email, no IM, no blogs.
MentalHealth.net has a good primer on Internet addiction titled Introduction to Internet Addiction.
Mental health professionals are split as to whether or not Internet addiction is real. No one disputes that some people use the Internet in a compulsive manner even to a point where it interferes with their their ability to function at work and in social relationships. What is disputed is whether people can become addicted to the Internet itself, or rather to the stimulation and information that the web provides. The controversy surrounding Internet Addiction is precisely whether people become addicted to the net itself, or to the stimulation to be had via the net (such as online gambling, pornography or even simple communication with others via chat and bulletin boards.)
If you need a good look at the basics of Internet addiction that article should be able to help you.
If you need a more detailed and academic look at Internet addiction, there’s Internet Addiction Disorder: Causes, Symptoms,and Consequences by Jennifer Ferris. Not the most light reading, but if you’re interested in Internet addiction, it’s a good read.
And maybe it’s ironic that you’re looking up information on Internet addiction while using the Internet?
What are your thoughts? Are you addicted to the Internet? Do you know someone who is? How has it affected your life? Leave a comment below and let us know!
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I’ve been losing weight a lot since reading ur posts, thanks!
After Mao died in 1976, the new leadership started dramatically reforming the economic system in China. This began with abandoning the Stalinist-style collectivist agriculture and giving farmers more freedom, etc. and has continued to this day
As an extreme example, in order to make government quotas, steel factories used to make steel so bad that no one could use it. That was because the government cared only about the amount, not the quality, and poor quality steel was easier to produce. When the factories didn't have to worry about quotas, but only how much profit they made, they started paying attention to what people would actually buy.
There is still more state control of the economy of China than in most developed countries, but there is much less than there used to be.
And it is generally recognized that this economic liberalization has been the primary cause of the China's economic growth.
At the same time, China has been smarter about those parts of the economy that the government still does control: managing foreign exchange; encouraging foreign investment; making investments for raw materials all over the world; etc.
Attention Deficit Disorder
Try forgetting any Internet responsibilities like regular checking of emails and social networking acc maintenance. Limit your use. If it still doesn't work, throw your computer out of the window then forget about the computer to stop Internet Addiction. Have your Internet connection cut. ^^,