Are you addicted to the Internet ?

Afif, my 3 years old son surfing www.starfall.com

Internet is the network of networks that linking computers to computers across the world. In simplest way, it is a kind of channel/vehicle that functions to transport information from a computer to another. The history of Internet technology can be trace as early as 1958 before growing public interest by late 1994. Based on Internet World Stats, there were 1.04 billion Internet users as of 30th. June, 2006.

What does using Internet mean? You are considering using internet when you use any of this activity: email, online chat, streaming media, Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) file transfer, web pages and World Wide Web. When Internet get commercially and globally started, issues such as Internet literacy and internet-phobia are common. But now, Internet Addiction Disorder has been identified as one of the new psychopathologies of the Internet era. Although there is none comprehensive empirical study yet, but it’s estimated that 10 percent of users become addicted to Internet. In general, research has found cyber-sexual addiction, cyber-relation addiction, net compulsions, information overload and computer addiction are five general types of Internet addiction.

How do you know that you are addicted to the Internet? Do spending long hours in front of the computer mean that you are addicted? To get some understanding, Dr. Stephen Juan of the University of Sydney has identified several symptoms:

* Spending a significant amount of time in Internet activities.
* Accessing the Internet more often or longer than intended time.
* Experiencing withdrawal symptoms, including distress or impairment of social, personal or
occupational functioning.
* Using Internet to relieve or avoid withdrawal symptoms.
* Having withdrawal symptoms after reducing Internet use.
* Reduce or eliminate important social, occupational or recreational activities due to using
Internet.
* Experience a risk of loss of significant relationship, job or educational opportunity due to
excessive using the Internet.
* Using Internet as a way to escape problems, relieving feelings of guilt, helplessness, anxiety or
depression.
* Feeling a need to increase amount of time using Internet to achieve satisfaction.

To help you understand whether you are addicted to internet, Dr. K.S. Young of the Department of Psychology at the University of Pittsburg has developed an Internet Addiction Test (IAT). The Internet Addiction Test is the first validated and reliable measure of addictive use of the Internet. To have your personal test, please visit to http://www.netaddiction.com/resources/internet_addiction_test.htm.