Abstract
The aim of this paper is to review the gradually evolving body of the literature on Internet addiction. Two schools of thought have emerged: those authors who believe that Internet addiction merits classification as a new or emerging psychiatric disorder in its own right, and those who define certain individuals as having problematic Internet use in relation to specific online activities, such as gambling, email or pornography. Despite a total lack of methodologically sound research, the evidence appears to support the second perspective. It appears that individuals who are premorbidly vulnerable, especially with a history of impulse control and addictive disorders, are especially at risk of using the Internet in a problematic way. Aside from the personal and social implications of this finding, this behavior has important implications for the workplace and may be resulting in substantial loss of productivity in companies who are not implementing Internet governance policies.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 1447-1453 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Computers in Human Behavior |
| Volume | 23 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Apr 2007 |
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Keywords
- Internet addiction
- Problematic Internet use
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Computer Science Applications
- Developmental and Educational Psychology
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Cite this
Problematic Internet use or Internet addiction? / Yellowlees, Peter Mackinlay; Marks, Shayna.
In: Computers in Human Behavior, Vol. 23, No. 3, 04.2007, p. 1447-1453.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Problematic Internet use or Internet addiction?
AU - Yellowlees, Peter Mackinlay
AU - Marks, Shayna
PY - 2007/4
Y1 - 2007/4
N2 - The aim of this paper is to review the gradually evolving body of the literature on Internet addiction. Two schools of thought have emerged: those authors who believe that Internet addiction merits classification as a new or emerging psychiatric disorder in its own right, and those who define certain individuals as having problematic Internet use in relation to specific online activities, such as gambling, email or pornography. Despite a total lack of methodologically sound research, the evidence appears to support the second perspective. It appears that individuals who are premorbidly vulnerable, especially with a history of impulse control and addictive disorders, are especially at risk of using the Internet in a problematic way. Aside from the personal and social implications of this finding, this behavior has important implications for the workplace and may be resulting in substantial loss of productivity in companies who are not implementing Internet governance policies.
AB - The aim of this paper is to review the gradually evolving body of the literature on Internet addiction. Two schools of thought have emerged: those authors who believe that Internet addiction merits classification as a new or emerging psychiatric disorder in its own right, and those who define certain individuals as having problematic Internet use in relation to specific online activities, such as gambling, email or pornography. Despite a total lack of methodologically sound research, the evidence appears to support the second perspective. It appears that individuals who are premorbidly vulnerable, especially with a history of impulse control and addictive disorders, are especially at risk of using the Internet in a problematic way. Aside from the personal and social implications of this finding, this behavior has important implications for the workplace and may be resulting in substantial loss of productivity in companies who are not implementing Internet governance policies.
KW - Internet addiction
KW - Problematic Internet use
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UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=33846080539&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.chb.2005.05.004
DO - 10.1016/j.chb.2005.05.004
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:33846080539
VL - 23
SP - 1447
EP - 1453
JO - Computers in Human Behavior
JF - Computers in Human Behavior
SN - 0747-5632
IS - 3
ER -