The majority of internet visitors are students and youngsters, and it is within this demographic that the risk of Internet addiction is highest. Students make up the majority of Internet users due to their constant desire for information, high cognitive motivation, high social engagement, and lack of time.
- The Internet is fairly young information and communication tool that has begun to develop over the past ten years.
Perhaps this is the reason why the main user of it is a young or relatively young part of the population.
The Internet offers the widest range of options for receiving and distributing scientific, business, educational, and entertainment information for free. The worldwide network unites nearly all of the world’s main scientific and government organizations, universities and business centers, news agencies, and publishing companies, forming a massive data storehouse for all disciplines of human knowledge. A vast amount of text, pictures, audio, and video content can be found in virtual libraries, archives, and news feeds. The Internet has become a deeply connected component of modern society.
2. The Internet has become a part of our life.
Many of us now find it impossible to imagine a life without the Internet. But only for a few decades, we weren’t even close to it. And there were numerous benefits to this. We are, of course, talking about the advantages for young people, as young people make up a major portion of the internet’s users. It is sufficient to make a comparison between the current generation of young people and previous generations.
3. Why live in the actual world if you can be “successful” in the virtual one?
Regularly, students chat with friends and communicate with dozens or hundreds of girls and guys with whom they would be afraid to speak in person. Not everyone is cut out to be a sportsperson. And there are a lot of possibilities! Earnings, “respect” in the public eye, a large number of virtual “friends,” etc. Of course, many people are pleased with this, because life is more complicated. Young people have taken to social media in droves, literally living on their sites and in virtual worlds they have created for themselves.
And it would have been okay if it hadn’t gone so far. Teenagers are unaccustomed to normal life; they cannot communicate with people in the real world, and they feel starved when they do not receive the next dose of their virtual pill. Take away your child’s computer, phone, and television. What is he going to do? Like an addict, he will experience “withdrawal pains.” Outside of the virtual world, he has no idea what he can do. This is a significant disadvantage of the Internet and its associated risks.
Is it possible to be infected with the Internet?
After all, the Internet isn’t a disease that has spread throughout the body. The connection to the server and the trip through the information space do not lead to any sort of “pathological” addiction.
Modern man has a variety of enjoyable ways to spend his time, but he is always on the lookout for new ones. This row has a dedicated place for the network. The network only causes psychological dependence. This might be used as a justification: the network is an “environmentally friendly” stress reliever.
We can find a computer with the Internet in almost every home on our planet. The majority of computer users cannot imagine their life without free access to the Internet.
Spending time on social media has recently become one of the most popular types of leisure activity for young people. According to global statistics, roughly half of the world’s population is a member of a social network, and some people are members of many networks at the same time.
Teenagers, for the most part, are obsessed with social media. For example, 96 percent of young people use social media to communicate. The convenience of use, the ease and simplicity of communication, the comprehensiveness and accessibility of the information stored on the Internet, and the vast choice of fun and opportunities are the key reasons why students become addicted to the Internet.
What would a student do now if he or she was asked to prepare an essay? Go to the library? Not likely. There are also times when the library does not have the necessary information on a certain subject. As a result, for students, the Internet is a lifeline. Almost all knowledge is now in the public domain, which means that anyone may learn about almost anything in the world, including how to write an essay. With the help of the Internet, you can even find a professional writer who provides the “write my paper” service and writes your essay quickly and efficiently. Of course, such an opportunity would have been the envy of pupils in the 1990s, when only a few people had heard of the Internet.
As never before, modern society faces an acute problem all over the world, and today scientists researched Internet addiction. A group of Chinese scientists, for example, was able to conduct a study confirming that the Internet affects the brain, causing changes similar to those seen in persons hooked to alcohol or video games.
Psychological symptoms of the Internet-addicted teenager:
- well-being or euphoria at the computer;
- not being able to stop;
- an increase in time spent in front of the computer;
- avoidance family and friends meetings;
- a sense of emptiness, despair, and frustration without devices;
- problems with your employment or studies; lying to employers or family members about your activities
It’s difficult to develop an addiction when you have unlimited access to the Internet every day. However, if you turn off the Internet, you can immediately detect whether or not someone is addicted.
The Internet has a lot of advantages, and this article is merely a warning, so don’t jump to the conclusion that it’s always dangerous and destructive. Create an Internet-using culture, and use this world of limitless possibilities to attain goals and address real, not virtual, problems. For vital and important skills and practical information, use the World Wide Web.