3 SECOND EDITION

U N I T 2 C o m p u t e rs a nd Te c hnology 1

Addicted to the
Net?

Pre-Reading Questions

Think about the following questions.

1. How much time do you spend online each day?
2. What takes up most of your time online: e-mailing, surfing, chatting,
or gaming?
3. Have you bought anything online either through a commercial site
or an auction? If yes, describe your experience.

Vocabulary Preview
Match each word or phrase with the correct definition.

1. symptom a. to take away; withdraw

2. disorder b. to depend

3. invest c. to put money into; to buy stocks

4. immediate d. an illness; a malady

5. remove e. a condition accompanying or resulting from a disease

6. rely f. at once; instantaneous

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Addicted to the Net? Track 5

I
nternet users who spend as much as thirty hours a week or more surfing the
Web may endanger personal relationships, jobs, and their finances. These
individuals appear to be addicted to the Internet, but what is Internet
addiction and why is it so prevalent?
5 Symptoms of Internet addiction include a constant desire to get online, a need
to use the Internet for longer periods of time in order to find satisfaction, and
feelings of restlessness or irritability when not online. Other symptoms include using
the Internet to escape problems and lying to family or friends about time spent on
the Internet. Another serious symptom is continuing to use the Internet even after
10 problems develop in relationships, work, or school as a result of such use. A person
who suffers three or more of these symptoms over a 12-month period or more would
be considered addicted.
A recent study published in the Journal of Affective Disorders examined the
Internet habits of twenty people. These people spent more than thirty non-working
15 hours a week online over a three-year period. The participants reported staying up
all night, ignoring family responsibilities, and being late for work as a result of their
online activities. As a consequence, many suffered from relationship problems, failed
classes or lost jobs, as well as accumulation of large debts. These participants’ habits
met the criteria for a psychological disorder. Specifically, they had impulse control
20 disorder. The findings of this study have given rise to the term “Net compulsion” to
describe Internet addiction. Since these findings, Net compulsions have been further
defined to include compulsive online gambling, cybersex compulsion, online auction
addiction, and obsessive online trading.
But what is it that makes online auction houses, gambling, pornography, or trading
25 so addictive? The first factor which may contribute to compulsive use of a product is
accessibility. Before the existence of the Internet, a person
needed to travel to a casino in order to gamble. To invest, a
person needed to call or visit a broker. Shopping involved
spending hours visiting various stores, waiting in long lines,

4
prevalent --- widespread
18
accumulation --- what is collected or acquired
19
impulse --- a sudden force or urge resulting in action
22
compulsive --- having difficulty to stop or control doing
something
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indulge --- to give in to a desire
36
gratification --- a source of pleasure or satisfaction
36
whim --- a sudden thought or desire
41
obsession --- a fascination; a compulsion
45
bidder --- a person who offers a certain amount of money as the
price or fee that one will pay
45
intoxicating --- exciting; stimulating

30 or fighting crowds. Now, those with access to the Internet have immediate,
24-hour access to everything. This includes virtual gaming sites, online
trading sites that provide up-to-the-minute stock reports, pornographic
materials and sex chat rooms, and online auction houses where they can
find any item imaginable. As the problems and limitations of real life
35 are removed, some people begin to indulge more heavily in these
activities for immediate gratification and to satisfy whims.
Control is a second factor influencing compulsive behavior. Online stock trading
serves as a good example of the effect control has on compulsive behavior. In the past,
people had to rely on brokers. Today, individuals have the ability to take control
40 over their own investing. Such full personal control leads some people to develop an
obsession with monitoring and adjusting their investments.
A third important factor is excitement. Excitement represents the emotional
“rush” or “high” associated with winning. In gambling, the rush of winning becomes
a great reinforcement to continue playing. In auction sites, obtaining an item by
45 beating other bidders seconds before the bid closes can be intoxicating. With any
compulsive activity, the excitement surrounding the activity becomes a powerful
hook encouraging future behavior.
No one knows exactly how many people develop personal problems through
such use of the Internet. However, in the largest study of Internet users, involving
50 17,000 participants, psychologist David Greenfield speculated that approximately six
million Americans could be addicted.
However, help is available for those with Net compulsion. Psychologists have
been studying obsessive and compulsive behaviors and their treatments for years.
Mental health professionals have established therapies to help people curb the
55 length of time spent online. Currently, Internet-addiction centers are opening across
the United States. These aim to help self-confessed addicts, focusing on addressing the
underlying problems which may have contributed to Internet overuse in the first
place. But as with other addictions, recovery can only occur with an honest admission
of the problem.

Reading Time _______ minutes _______ seconds 690 words

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R eading Comprehension
A Mark each statement as either true (T) or false (F) according to the
reading.
1. ____ One possible consequence of Internet addiction is divorce.
2. ____ Online auction addiction is one kind of Net compulsion.
3. ____ Most online addicts feel bored when online.
4. ____ Wireless technology will likely decrease addiction rates among Internet
users.

B Choose the best answer according to the reading.

1. What is implied by the author?
a. Government control of Internet content could solve this problem.
b. Internet addiction may require psychological counseling.
c. People can only be addicted to drugs, not technology.
d. The Internet is more dangerous than some drugs.

2. Which is NOT really a symptom of Internet addiction?

a. Always looking for the next opportunity to check e-mail
b. Not feeling satisfied after surfing for five hours
c. Spending time setting up a personal homepage
d. Telling your roommate you just got online after chatting online for two
hours

3. Which online activities might lead to compulsive behavior?

a. Playing virtual slot machines
b. Ordering discount jewelry online
c. Keeping track of stock market gains and losses
d. All of the above

C For the next two questions, look for the answers in the book and write
it on the lines provided.
1. What do Internet-addiction centers focus on when trying to help self-confessed
addicts?
______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________

2. What are three factors that influence compulsive behavior?

______________________________________________________
______________________________________________________
S ummary
Fill in the blanks with phrases from the list. Use each phrase only once.

three or more highest bid addicted to the Internet

bidding in auctions through a broker accumulate a lot of

People who spend too much time online may be 1 _____________________.

These people usually rely on the Internet far too much. They simply can’t remove
themselves or their thoughts from the Net. Because of this, they may develop problems
in their personal lives or 2 ___________________debt due to gambling or
shopping. The criteria used to determine if a person has this disorder include a list of
six kinds of compulsive behaviors. If a person shows 3 _______________ of these
symptoms throughout the year, the person is probably addicted to the Net. There are
three factors that make the Internet addictive: accessibility, control, and excitement.
People can go online any time to indulge in gambling, pornography,
4 __________________, or investing in stocks. In terms of control, people have
a lot more control over their personal finances and stocks now that trading can be
done online rather than 5 ____________________. And with activities like
winning at a game of online poker or making the 6 ____________________ in
an auction, people feel an immediate rush of excitement that encourages them to
play more or bid again.

V ocabulary Extension
Here are six words that are related to the topic but are not in the reading.
Fill in each blank with the best word from the list. Use each word only once.

enabler trauma dependency

relapse behavior-modification prognosis

1. He was doing well in his treatment, but he suffered a(n) _____________.

2. She has a chemical _____________.
3. Some psychiatrists treat their patients through _____________ therapy which
encourages them to acknowledge and change their negative behaviors.
4. Because of the _____________ she faced when her mother was killed, she has not
been able to build close relationships with others.
5. Within a psychological framework, the _____________ is the person who helps the
addicted person to continue with unhealthy behaviors.
6. Although we worried about Sam’s chances for a full recovery, the psychiatrist’s
_____________ was positive.
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S upplemental Reading

The Inventor of Internet Addiction? Track 6

D
r. Ivan K. Goldberg, a psychiatrist and clinical psychopharmacologist
came up with the term “Internet addiction” in 1995. But he never thought
anyone would take him seriously. In fact, he said the disorder didn’t really
exist. In 1986, Goldberg created an online club for psychiatrists called PsyCom.Net
5 and often browsed the site for news and messages. While reading the messages posted
on the site’s bulletin boards, he came up with the idea of posting a message to poke
fun at the American Psychiatric Association’s Manual of Mental Disorders.
He made up a disease called “Internet addiction disorder” (IAD). In the message,
he described symptoms of the disease. One symptom Goldberg listed was that
10 “important social and occupational activities are given up or reduced because of
Internet use.” Other symptoms included dreaming about the Internet and having
uncontrolled movements of the fingers as if typing.
To Goldberg’s surprise, several colleagues admitted to suffering IAD and asked
him for help. In response, Goldberg set up the Internet Addiction Support Group
15 online for his colleagues. Soon, hundreds of self-described addicts began to post
messages on the site, and some people admitted surfing up to twelve hours per day.
Several universities and hospitals in the United States began
to set up counseling services for those with IAD.
Despite his uneasiness over the part he played in this
20 “discovery,” Goldberg says he posts a message to members of
the Internet addicts forum every six months or so, trying to
get them to consider why they are online and to consider
psychotherapy.

Discussion
Discuss the following questions.
1. Do you think the Internet makes things like gambling or pornography too
accessible? Why or why not?
2. Do you think that IAD is a genuine problem? Why or why not?