Are you an Internet addict?
Well we have heard this one before that Internet can get addictive.. But now giving this notion more credibility is a study done by Stanford where the researchers conducted a nationwide household survey and interviewed 2,513 adults. As there are no generally accepted screening instrument that exist for problematic Internet use, the researchers developed their questions by extrapolating from other compulsive and addictive conditions.
So here are the key findings from the report:
The researchers found that 68.9 percent were regular Internet users, which is consistent with previous studies, and that:
- 13.7 percent (more than one out of eight respondents) found it hard to stay away from the Internet for several days at a time
- 12.4 percent stayed online longer than intended very often or often
- 12.3 percent had seen a need to cut back on Internet use at some point
- 8.7 percent attempted to conceal non-essential Internet use from family, friends and employers
- 8.2 percent used the Internet as a way to escape problems or relieve negative mood
- 5.9 percent felt their relationships suffered as a result of excessive Internet use
The researchers said that the next step is to conduct comprehensive clinical interviews on a large sample of people to better identify clinically relevant markers for problematic Internet use, and to better understand whether this phenomenon constitutes an independent psychological disorder.
Well one more career in the making if you ask me.. hmmm.. lets just call it Internet Psychologist for Problematic Internet use? Anyone interested?
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