Thank you for sharing your POV on this!

Thank you for sharing your POV on this!

You’re welcome! That makes a lot of sense!

You’re welcome! That makes a lot of sense!

Hello, Dante! Thank you so much! I would absolutely love to continue research on this topic. As for the next step in this research? I would like to go beyond the mental and psychological level & examine the issue from a more physiological perspective: that is, for people with ADHD, OCD, and/or social isolation and depression, how does internet addiction physically impact their brain matter? What parts of the brain are most impacted and why? Once those questions have been investigated, we may be able to gain an even clearer idea for treatment of such patients.

Hello, Dante! Thank you so much! I would absolutely love to continue research on this topic. As for the next step in this research? I would like to go beyond the mental and psychological level & examine the issue from a more physiological perspective: that is, for people with ADHD, OCD, and/or social isolation and depression, how does internet addiction physically impact their brain matter? What parts of the brain are most impacted and why? Once those questions have been investigated, we may be able to gain an even clearer idea for treatment of such patients.

Hello, Arvind! Thank you for your kind words. I would suggest that those two things are not mutually exclusive: ergo, internet addiction can be both a reinforcement as well as an escape. That being said, I personally feel that prior studies have shown that internet usage spirals into addiction as a result of using it as an escape from the real world more often than not. For individuals with ADHD, internet usage yields a perpetual flow of mental stimulation satisfying the brain’s needs, and thus here acts as a reinforcement. For those suffering from social isolation and/or depression, the internet is more often a place of escape so they do not have to face the real world. I hope this helps! I think future research should definitely look into each possible interpretation.

Hello, Arvind! Thank you for your kind words. I would suggest that those two things are not mutually exclusive: ergo, internet addiction can be both a reinforcement as well as an escape. That being said, I personally feel that prior studies have shown that internet usage spirals into addiction as a result of using it as an escape from the real world more often than not. For individuals with ADHD, internet usage yields a perpetual flow of mental stimulation satisfying the brain’s needs, and thus here acts as a reinforcement. For those suffering from social isolation and/or depression, the internet is more often a place of escape so they do not have to face the real world. I hope this helps! I think future research should definitely look into each possible interpretation.

Thank you Professor Reeder! That’s an excellent question: I would say that the most effective treatments would include things like monitoring one’s usage of the internet & gradually lowering that amount day by day, counseling to discuss emotional and mental fragility & what the internet does to relieve that pain, and also increasing one’s usage of paper & physical reading material instead of constantly relying on the internet. Several studies have also shown that isolating or restricting addicts access to the source of addiction is a great method, so applying that logic to internet addiction would also likely work well.

Thank you Professor Reeder! That’s an excellent question: I would say that the most effective treatments would include things like monitoring one’s usage of the internet & gradually lowering that amount day by day, counseling to discuss emotional and mental fragility & what the internet does to relieve that pain, and also increasing one’s usage of paper & physical reading material instead of constantly relying on the internet. Several studies have also shown that isolating or restricting addicts access to the source of addiction is a great method, so applying that logic to internet addiction would also likely work well.