internet addiction

Axiomatically, the snowballing use of contemporary networking gadgets, such as smartphones and computers, has changed everyday society's way of life in the sense that group communications and conversations continue to revolve around the Internet, and as a result, many practitioners and social scientists have given a great boost to exploring it in detail. Precisely, the internet has been a subject of interest to many, particularly when social life is referred to (Whang et al. 143).
The use of the Computer and the Internet of Things came to the human race as a supernatural invention. In the last 15 years, it has been a medium of awakening for human cultures. For instance, it has encouraged transfer and accessibility of information, digital communication, and interactions among people hence the massive spread of knowledge. Currently, it has attracted users worldwide, thus, is another significant platform that drives globalization besides technological advancements. Unfortunately, it has created the certain set of problems including internet addiction. According to Kuss and Mark (22) it refers to users_x0092_ predictive behavior of using the internet everywhere for a proximate period of forty to eighty hours every week per session lasting twenty hours. This paper, therefore, delves into internet addiction with a focus on problems emanating from internet addiction as well as possible intervention measures.Discussions on the Effects Internet Addiction from the Literature Search
Internet addict(s) addict is an individual who never parts with a phone. He or she will ensure that wherever he/she is a phone must be there. Entangled with this problem, the addicts will always find it challenging to part with the internet (Chou et al. 363). Internet addictions exude a lot of symptoms. It is very easy for an individual to tell whether he or she is addicted. The first sign to look at and comprehend addiction is a regular phone user my start experiencing unusual health conditions and anomalies like regular headaches, persistent drizzling, and other symptoms which help to gauge whether an individual is addicted to phone or not. All these happenings are a clear manifestation of phone abuse (Chou et al. 363).
Secondly, the addicts are always crying over the low battery. The Rate of phone usage is high, and hence the battery capacity cannot sustain it. Frequently, you are likely to find them with power banks purposed to ensure that at no time they go offline. Furthermore, addicted drivers or cyclists will always opt to communicate over the phone even while they are driving on the busy road. Moreover, addicts always assume that one phone and one line is not enough. Occasionally, you are probably to find them operating more than one phone at a time, the number of contact line cannot be over emphasized (Chou et al. 363). The effects of internet addiction which have been identified from the extant literature search are discussed below.
First, many marriages have been seriously disrupted by the spouses getting overindulged on the internet. Following this, they have less time allocated to act and accomplish their responsibilities. Observations are that they are greatly affected by the internet hence fail to act in time to finish their daily house chores. As such, _x0093_cyber-widow_x0094_ is an analogy that best describes the spouses since they resort to the internet as their companions forgetting certain tasks including the obligation to do the laundry or visit the grocery. In certain instance, they have forgotten to pick up children from school and only remember to do so when it is too late and only reminded by a call from school (Kuss and Mark, 66).
Internet addiction is a thorn in the flesh that massively destroys relationships. Unfortunately, the internet users have overlooked at the problem due to the current popularity as well as advanced utility. According to Boyd (44), fifty-three percent of relationships that failed to work allied to internet addiction. For instance, marriages, parent-children relationships, dating relationships and general close friendships surveyed have failed to work due to internet addiction.
Secondly, internet addiction has led to children being rebellious to their parents while parents intemperate such reactions as disobedience and lack of respect. For instance, children often spend most of time playing online video games with friends in close quarters, chat with friends through various communication platforms including Facebook, WhatsApp, and hangouts. The consequences are that they forget to do their home works as well as studies and finally fail. Parents, on the other hand, would want the children to avoid the internet which they realize to be time-consuming and would do anything necessary to stop them. Under such circumstances, conflicts arise within the families and poor interactions with the children arise creating undesired family relationships where the misunderstanding is the order of the day (Whang et al. 143).
Thirdly, dating relationships, as well as families, have failed due to internet addiction. The internet has taken communication online where people reach one another and provide feedbacks over the internet through messages applications on their respective devices. In such scenarios, an internet addict as noted in (Gackenbach, 56) forgets to reply their partner_x0092_s messages due to their attention shifted to other things online that they find more interesting. The result is that such persons end up breaking their relationship when the individual whose message was not replied feels not valued. Similarly, suspicion relating to _x0093_cyber affairs_x0094_ when an individual spends most of his time online has seen many relationships including those married breaking up. Others commit suicide for feeling rejected while others get distressed for having wasted time on the online dating affairs (Beard 14).
Still focusing on it effects, internet addition has been found to adversely impacts social life of those who become addicts to it. Researchers have indicated that the social life of persons who spent most of their time on internet either by surfing or performing other activities related to it have a tendency of developing a poor social life. It is also hard for such people to be talked to as they need no disturbances or when talked they may not pay attention to the conversation and thus they are likely to be secluded by these who feel like they need consideration when conversing with them (Nalwa et al. 635).
Furthermore, a study conducted by Kim, Yeonsoo et al (51) indicates that internet addiction has adverse effects on health and like style of those individuals who constantly use it. For instance, they usually become so absorbed to it to the extent that their eating habits will automatically change which directly affects their health and well-being. The study established that most of the addicts could hardly find _x0093_enough time_x0094_ to eat meal as most of the time they are found busy surfing or attending to other online activities such as gaming. They tend to hardly eat, and if they do, they take very small portion which consists of irregular eating partners. Moreover, the research found out that since they had less time to eat food, they could easily fall in the trap of abusing drugs as majority of the respondent consented of abusing drugs like taking alcohol and smoking tobacco. All these have negative effects on their lives as they end up being drug addicts and their heath diminishes apace as other malnutrition conditions sets in quickly.
The current school systems are embracing the use of the internet by buying computers and installing online education materials including students_x0092_ libraries. In addition, they end up installing wireless connections for use by those who own their personal computers. Once registered in such schools, the student is provided with school access emails, accounts, and passwords with the hope of accessing all course materials and relevant information sources that can help build the students_x0092_ knowledge (Nalwa et al. 635).
Unfortunately, such options have derailed student_x0092_s performances than to better them. In particular, internet addicted students do not use the school provided internet for research and study purposes. Instead, they get destructed with materials they find more interesting and satisfactory to them (Boyd, 55). The issue then becomes failing to cover the necessary course materials, thus, fail to obtain the pass marks required to move to the next level or complete the course. For fear and demoralization which accompany having to repeat the course, the student drops out of school without weighing the consequences of having a future with inadequate education to prepare them for the desired job opportunities.
Nevertheless, the internet is merited as an important research tool for every college students. The Internet in terms of information sharing, knowledge and research is a cost productive platform. However, the internet addicted students engage in irrelevant activities while given the opportunity to use the internet. For example, they mostly with or without knowing surf irrelevant but informative websites, play video games as well as participate in gossip chats at the expense of the recommended internet cost productive activities (Nalwa et al. 635).
Internet addiction in relation to addicted employees interferes with the level of productivity among the workers. This is currently the problem which many business managers have to deal with. A survey reported by (Montag, and Martin, 109) revealed that fifty-five percent of various company executives believed that a number of time employees spent on the internet for non-company activities greatly undermined their efficiency and effectiveness. For example, the addicted internet company employees besides spending most of their time surfing the internet while home-based hence waking up late to report to jobs, furthermore use the company resources to continue where they had left. The implication is that they have less time to work on the assigned company tasks leaving the managers with no options but to relieve them of their duties. Hence, internet addiction occupationally has made many employees to lose their jobs and end up in regrets (Nalwa et al. 635).
There should be social welfare programs that inform through creating awareness of the dangers of internet addiction among the users. For example, many people become addicted without realizing it. Hence, through creating such social welfare programs, the internet users will get the opportunity to understand the benefits of time management, prioritizing activities and using the internet for the right purpose (Beard 14).
To manage family problems such as internet related conflicts among parents and their children, the parents should not ban the use of internet instead they should focus on advising the children on the consequences of overuse and indulgent with the internet. Since they are in charge of the devices that the children use, they are obliged to set rules and talk to the children while informing them of the importance and need for such rules. For example, computers used by family members should not be in children_x0092_s rooms but at a position where everyone sees whatever goes on (Nalwa et al. 635).
To manage occupational and academic problems caused by internet addiction, the institutions and the companies should control the material that is only related to the academics or work. Surfing beyond such scopes should be limited by creating barriers including the controlling sites and what an individual is able to access while using the institutional or business computers as well as networks (Beard 14).
Internet addiction is real and it is high time that people became informed of its dangers including relationship problems, occupational problems, and academic issues. Measures should be taken to curb the situation and prevent it from spreading to other likely people who may be intensive users. Thus, there should be online awareness programs to inform and advise the users, parents should control what their children access while schools, institutions, and companies should control their networks to only avail materials in that are useful for relevant objectives (Beard 14).
Analysis from the Literature Review
Internet addiction is one of the threating issues to the society and has received considerable attention from the researchers who mostly are the psychologists and psychiatrists. The usage of internet has increased considerably in the past years which have been contributed to massive use of information and communication technology.in as much as it is the most effective and key aspects in our lives, studies have established that it is associated with many dysfunctional situations or many different problems (Beard 14).
Its usage is becoming more apparent. Experts in this area such as therapists have defined it as being an interdisciplinary occurrence and several sciences have researched and examined it including law, medicine, ethics, sociology among many other using different perspectives and research focus. The growing concern for studying it is a reason enough to be persuaded and certain that it is a complex form of psychological syndrome with various features such as: tolerance, effective disorders, social challenges among many others which come into play when a person become fully absorbed by it. It results in psychological education or even social conflict extending to an individual work life too (Beard 14).
Academically, it_x0092_s likely to affect the learning process as the addicts will frequently find it difficult to balance between learning session and staying online. This has resulted is students grades dropping. Additionally, their social life has been affects and most of them feel secluded by fellow students as they spent most of their life on the internet. This has greatly compromised their social life. Moreover, it can cause physical or mental health hitches like increases in depression, augmented anxiety, low family and social relationships among many other problems related to their health. Psychological effects include loss of sleep, lack of concentration, low morale, solitude, subjective distress and increased psychological arousal (Nalwa et al. 635)
Insights Learned From the Research
Internet usage is an important aspect of our lives. Its virtually influences our daily lives like interaction, communication, learning, researching, transacting, gaming, among many other ways through which internet has ben or can be used to ease our daily activities. Summative with all such tactical benefits, its constant usage has caused addiction to those who are in constant use of it. Many users have found themselves totally unable to do without it and truly becoming addicted to it. Student_x0092_s life can also be affected as their attention is affected by the internet activities. Marriages and families have experienced breakup which has been caused by one of the partner fluting online. It_x0092_s imperative to note that its usage cannot be wished off but it_x0092_s advisable that necessary steps to be taken to ensure that an individual uses it when there is need and avoid chances of becoming addicted to it (Beard 14).
Conclusion
Internet addiction has remained to be social vile that is damaging the society. Its effect are clear crystal as exhibited by those who become it addicts. The aim of this paper was to conduct literature review analysis on internet addiction, its effects and various interventions which can be used to mitigate the effects. The paper found out that it has many negative effects which have affected the quality of life of the addicts which include regular social problems, family issues, and academic problems among others that this paper evaluated.Works Cited
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