Is Tech Addiction Real?
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- By: Jamie Emerson
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- Brain Health
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- August 19, 2021
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- 6 Min read
We all know people who just can’t seem to do without their phones. They always have their noses—and attention—focused on their digital device. We might tell our distracted friends that they’re addicted to their devices, but are they really addicted to their devices? At this point, the science says no. However, everyone recognizes that overuse of smartphones and internet apps can be detrimental to a person’s self-esteem and their real-life relationships.
What is Addiction?
Addiction is an unfortunately common disorder that merges some aspects of a physical illness with a potent psychological disorder. A person with an addiction compulsively engages in a behavior that is extremely detrimental to their well-being and is unable to stop that behavior. To meet the definition of addiction, the addictive behavior must have significantly harmful and serious consequences that nevertheless do not cause the addict to change or stop that behavior.
An addicted person will pursue the object of their addiction no matter how severe the consequences become. Addiction is a progressive disorder and gets worse until the addict enters recovery and remission or passes away. Addiction is thus by definition, all-consuming.
Who determines what’s an addiction?
In the US, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 (DSM-5) is the master manual of psychiatric disorders. Compiled by hundreds of specialists in psychiatry, neurology, psychology, counseling, and therapy, and other medical specialties, the DSM has been improved and kept up-to-date for over 50 years.
There is no disorder that specifically addresses conditions where a person consistently overuses technological devices, like mobile phones or tablets in the DSM-5.
Internet Addiction Disorder
Internet Addiction Disorder also isn’t in the DSM-5, but the American Psychological Disorder recognizes it as a psychological condition. Internet Addiction Disorder (IAD) occurs when a person uses the internet to the detriment of their work or school performance, or when their internet use affects their in-person socialization, relationships, mental health, or their ability to carry out their activities of daily living. IAD doesn’t per se touch on a person’s overuse of or dependence on technological devices.
Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) is also a recognized condition in the DSM-5. It’s defined as recurrent, persistent use of video games to the extent that a person’s daily activities, including school or work performance, relationships, and so forth, become significantly impaired.
Technology Addiction: Social Media
So what does all this mean when it comes to addiction to technology? After all, parents and teachers are tired of having to tell their kids and students to put their devices away. Adults likewise may be unable to go an hour, let alone a day, without disappearing into their mobile phone screen. Researchers have even coined the term “nomophobia” to describe the fear of being away from one’s mobile phone (No More Mobile Phone phobia).
Of course, the devices people use to access the net aren’t really the issue. It’s what people do when they’re online that keeps them coming back to their phones and digital devices, and for some people, over-indulgence of those activities can be a real problem.
We know that many of the activities people participate in on the internet can be harmful to a person’s mental state when too much time is spent on them. We also know that young people are particularly vulnerable to the opinions of others. Research consistently shows that as a young person’s use of social media increases, their self-esteem decreases. Other measures of mental health are also impaired by too much time on social media.
Researchers are currently looking into issues like problematic smart phone use and social media addiction, both of which may be formally classified as members of the addiction family of disorders in the near future.
At this point, additional research needs to be done to nail down precisely what technological addiction is and how it differs from problematic internet usage or social media addiction.
Works Cited
- Cash, H., Rae, C. D., Steel, A., & Winkler, A. (2012, November). Internet addiction: A brief summary of research and practice. Current psychiatry reviews. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3480687/.
- Cash, H., Rae, C. D., Steel, A., & Winkler, A. (2012, November). Internet addiction: A brief summary of research and practice. Current psychiatry reviews. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3480687/.
- Colon-Rivera, H. (n.d.). What is a substance use disorder? What Is Addiction? https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/addiction/what-is-addiction. Retrieved August 1st, 2021.
- Hasin, D., O’Brien, C., Auriacombe, M., Borges, G., Bucholz, K., & Endicott, J. (2013, August 1). Dsm-5 criteria for substance use disorders: Recommendations and rationale. American Journal of Psychiatry. https://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/appi.ajp.2013.12060782.
- "Internet Addiction Disorder." The Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Health. Retrieved July 31, 2021 from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/medicine/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/internet-addiction-disorder
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- Miller, C. (2019, February 19). Is internet addiction real? Child Mind Institute. https://childmind.org/article/is-internet-addiction-real/.
- Riehm KE, Feder KA, Tormohlen KN, et al. Associations Between Time Spent Using Social Media and Internalizing and Externalizing Problems Among US Youth. JAMA Psychiatry. 2019;76(12):1266–1273. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2019.2325
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- Walton, A. (2012, December 4). Internet addiction: The new mental health disorder? Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/alicegwalton/2012/10/02/the-new-mental-health-disorder-internet-addiction/?sh=5e3a67877404.
- What is the dsm-v? Applied Behavior Analysis Programs Guide. (2020, May 22). https://www.appliedbehavioranalysisprograms.com/faq/what-is-the-dsm-v/.