The US could be rife with 鈥渋nternet addicts鈥� who are as clinically ill as alcoholics, according to psychiatrists involved in a nationwide study.
The study, carried out by researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine in California, US, indicates that more than one in eight US residents show signs of 鈥減roblematic internet use鈥�.
The Stanford researchers interviewed 2513 adults in a nationwide survey. Because internet addiction is not a clinically defined medical condition, the questions used were based on analysis of other addiction disorders.
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Most disturbing, according to the study鈥檚 lead author Elias Aboujaoude, is the discovery that some people hide their internet surfing, or go online to cure foul moods 鈥� behaviour that mirrors the way alcoholics behave.
鈥淚n a sense, they鈥檙e using the internet to self-medicate,鈥� Aboujaoude says. 鈥淎nd, obviously, something is wrong when people go out of their way to hide their internet activity.鈥�
Non-essential use
Nearly 14% of respondents said they found it difficult to stay away from the internet for several days and 12% admitted that they often remain online longer than expected.
More than 8% of those surveyed said they hid internet use from family, friends and employers, and the same percentage confessed to going online to flee from real-world problems. Approximately 6% also said their personal relationships had suffered as a result of excessive internet usage.
鈥淧otential markers of problematic internet use are present in a sizeable portion of the population,鈥� the researchers note.
Compulsive drive
Aboujaoude, a psychiatry professor at Stanford鈥檚 Impulse Control Disorders Clinic, says an increasing number of people are seeking help from doctors because of unhealthy internet use.
He compares the compulsive drive to check email, make blog entries or visit websites to substance abuse 鈥� an irresistible urge to perform a temporarily pleasurable act.
鈥淭he issue is starting to be recognised as a legitimate object of clinical attention, as well as an economic problem, given that a great deal of non-essential internet use takes place at work,鈥� Aboujaoude says.
He adds that the problem is not confined to specific types of internet use. 鈥淥nline pornography and, to some degree, online gambling, have received the most attention,鈥� he says, 鈥渂ut users are as likely to use other sites, including chat rooms, shopping venues and special-interest websites.鈥�
Previous research suggests that the majority of 鈥渋nternet addicts鈥� are single, college-educated, white males in their 30s, who spend approximately 30 hours a week on non-essential computer use.
Journal reference: CNS Spectrums: The International Journal of Neuropsychiatric Medicine (October issue)
