Normal lifestyle habits such as eating and sleeping, friendly contacts and leisure activities as well as active family life are usually neglected. In extreme cases, the virtual world becomes a substitute for the usual real social contacts. There is a loss of control, whereby users cannot manage their consumption of the Internet or cannot stop it and have a constant desire to log on to the Internet. A build-up of tolerance can often be observed, which leads to the user having to spend more and more time online in order to achieve their subjective well-being. In addition, there are the “defense mechanisms” typical of addiction, which are found in all addictions. They range from denial and projection to concealing online activities or trivializing usage habits. If the use of the Internet is prevented, psychological irritation occurs, which can manifest itself in withdrawal symptoms, bad mood, nervousness, irritability, sleep disorders and even sweating.
The reason for Internet addiction is the attractiveness of the Internet through the new possibilities for action such as escaping reality and experimenting with one’s own identity. Fleeing from reality can mean fleeing from personal problems such as inferiority complexes or with one’s social environment such as integration difficulties, problems establishing contacts or loneliness. In the chat room, the deeply human longing for care, understanding and love is apparently satisfied. The desires hidden there are not fulfilled in reality, so the Internet is used vicariously to combat depression, anxiety or simple everyday upsets. Depressed and solitary people are considered particularly at risk because they feel unable to cope with the pressures of everyday life and escape into the virtual world to balance themselves out. Students neglect their homework and, like adults, withdraw more and more from the outside world.
The Internet makes the phenomenon of gaming addiction and shopping addiction even stronger, because this medium is available at any time and any place. The pathological consumption of goods among Internet addicts usually has similar reasons as the shopping addiction in the real world. It’s less about owning things, but rather the process of shopping itself gives addicts a deep sense of satisfaction. Those affected experience a feeling of happiness when playing or shopping and can at the same time numb inner restlessness and suppress fears or depressive symptoms.
In order to prevent the development of internet addiction, users should critically observe how they use this medium. If there are signs of addiction developing, internet use should be restricted. If this is not possible on your own, it is advisable to seek professional support at an early stage in order to avoid the addictive behavior becoming chronic but, above all, as with other addictions, to primarily treat the causes, not the symptoms. Since more and more young people are affected by the problem of Internet addiction, parents should monitor their children’s Internet usage behavior.
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