Internet Addiction Behaviors

• In 1995, Ivan Goldberg, a doctor of psychology, made a list of some of the behaviors involved in Internet addiction. He had begun to notice that many of the behaviors of people constantly on the Internet were similar to those of an obsessive gambler. Some of the behaviors he listed are: the need for more time on the Internet, withdrawal symptoms from reduced use, anxiety, agitation and obsessive thinking about the Internet.
  
  

Controversy

• There is still controversy about whether Internet addiction will be categorized as an actual addiction. According to the Ottawa Citizen, doctors are pressing to have Internet Addiction added to, "the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, psychiatry's official dictionary of mental illnesses. The next edition is due out in 2012."
  
  

Types

• People who are addicted to the Internet usually are involved heavily in social networking games, gambling, viewing pornography, shopping or blog/journal networking sites.
  
  

Theories

• Internet addicts sometimes have a completely different life online. They could be involved in a social game where they have friends from all over the world they have never met in real life; they may have responsibilities and power in their online life; or they even might have an online boyfriend, girlfriend or family.
  
  

Warning

• If your online friends are coming before your real-life family, you may be addicted. If your Internet life is stopping you from accomplishing your real-life responsibilities, then you may be addicted. People often use the Internet as a way of escaping real-life emotional problems.