Presentation of Internet addiction/ Digital virus

1. MR. BASU DEV
SAPKOTA

2. Focus Questions:
How can school personnel identify, prevent and educate
students on the danger of internet addictions ?
Related Questions:
What is an internet addiction and how can it be identified?

4. Addiction, defined by Webster Dictionary as a "compulsive need for and
use of a habit-forming substance characterized by tolerance and by well-
defined physiological symptoms upon withdrawal“
In 1998, Dr. Jonathan J. Kandell defined Internet addiction as "a
psychological dependence on the Internet, regardless of the type of activity
once logged on.
Dr. Keith W. Beard (2005) articulates that "an individual is addicted when
an individual’s psychological state, which includes both mental and emotional
states, as well as their scholastic, occupational and social interactions, is
impaired by the overuse of [Internet]".
Definition:

5. Symptoms
• Increasing preoccupation with, and investment of resources (e.g., time, money, energy)
on Internet-related activities
• Unpleasant feelings (e.g., depression, anxiety, loneliness, emptiness) when not online
• Negative impact on work/school performance
• Problems develop in existing relationships
• Difficulty in forming new offline relationships
• Tolerance can develop
• Denial

6. Warning Signs
• A demonstrated “loss of control” when trying to stop or limit the amount of time on the
computer, breaking promises to self or others.
• Being dishonest about internet activities of minimizing the extent of the time you stay on the
computer.
• Mixed feeings of euphoria (a “rush”), combined with feelings of guilt brought on by either
the inordinate amount of time spent on the computer of the abnormal behavious acted out
while using the computer.
• Feelings of depression of anxiety when something or someone shortens your time or
interrupts your plan to use the computer

7. Who is at Risk ?
• Anyone using the internet for more than 2 hours a day outside work
commitments
• Teenagers and children who use the internet unmonitored
• Women and men in their mid-50s suffering from the loneliness of an
“empty nest.”

8. Do you think Internet Addiction is a real
disorder?
A. YES, I know people who are addicted to the internet
B. It is a real problem, but it should be named something else.
C. NO, using the internet can never be such problem.

9. Types of Internet
Addiction
• Internet gambling addiction:
• Internet gaming addiction
• Internet chatting addiction
• Cybersex addiction
• Auction addiction

11. How can you help?
• You can and should model appropriate computer use
• Supervise computer activity and get your child help form one of the following
resources if he or she needs it:
• School counselor
• School social worker
• School psychologist
• Outside agencies and resources

13. CONSEQUENCES:
1. PHYSICAL SIDE EFFECTS:
i. SLEEP DEPREVATION
ii. RISK OF CARPAL TUNNEL SUNDROME
iii. BACK STRAIN
iv. EYESTRAIN
v. HEADACHES

14. 2. FAMILY PROBLEMS:
i. MARRIAGES
ii. DATING RELATIONSHIPS
iii. PARENT-CHILD RELATIONSHIP
iv. CLOSE FRIENDHSIPS

15. 3. ACADEMIC
PROBLEMS:
• MORE TIME IS SPENT “RESEARCHING THAN ACTUALLY COMPLETING
ASSIGNMENTS.
• INCOMPLETE OR MISSING ASSIGNMENTS
• INABILITY TO CONCENTRATE ON REAL LIFE ACTIVITIES
• GRADES BEGIN TO DECLINE
• SKIPPING CLASSES TO STAY IN CHAT ROOM

16. Measurement for Internet Addiction:

17. IAT Activity
• The Internet Addiction Test (IAT) is the first validated and reliable measure of
addictive use of the internet developed by Dr. Kimberly Young, the IAT is a 20-
item questionnaire that measures mild, moderate, and severe levels of internet
addiction.

18. 0 DOES NOT APPLY
1 RARELY
2 OCCASIONALLY
3 FREQUENTLY
4 OFTEN
5 ALWAYS
1. How often do you find that you stay on-line longer than you intended?
2. How often do you neglect household chores to spend more time on-line?
3. How often do you prefer the excitement of the internet to intimacy with your partner?
4. How often do you form new relationships with fellow on-line users?
5. How often do others in your life complain to you about the amount of time you spend on-line?

19. 1. How often do your grades or school work suffers because of the amount of time you
spend on-line?
2. How often do you check your email before something else that you need to do?
3. How often does your job performance or productivity suffer because of the internet?
4. How often do you become defensive or secretive when anyone asks you what you do
on-line?
5. How often do you block out disturbing thoughts about your life with soothing
thoughts of the internet?

20. 1. How often do you find yourself anticipating when you will go on-line again?
2. How often do you fear that life without the internet would be boring, empty,
and joyless?
3. How often do you snap, yell, or act annoyed if someone bothers you while you
are on-line?
4. How often do you lose sleep due to late-night log-ins?
5. How often do you feel preoccupied with the internet when off-line, or fantasize
about being on-line?

21. 1. How often do you find yourself saying “just a few more minutes” when online?
2. How often do you try to cut down the amount of time you spend on-line and
fail?
3. How often do you try to hide how long you’ve been on-line?
4. How often do you choose to spend more time on-line over going out with
others?
5. How often do you feel depressed, moody or nervous when you are off-line,
which goes away once you are back on-line?

22. SCORES:
• 20 – 49 points: you are an average on-line user. you may surf the web a bit too long at
times, but you have control over your usage.
• 50 – 79 points: you are experiencing occasional or frequent problems because of the
internet. you should consider their full impact on your life.
• 80 – 100 points: your internet usage is causing significant problems in your life. you should
elevate the impact of the internet on your life and address the problems directly caused by
you internet usage.

23. THANK YOU