Right, good morning, everyone. I am really glad to see you here today. My name is Somebody Someone. I’m studying in the second year of Computer Science here at Masaryk University and I’d like to present you some ideas about Internet Addiction Disorder. What I want to do today is make you think about a useful application of the Internet. First I’ll tell you what Internet Addiction Disorder is, then I’ll describe its symptoms and types, and finally I’ll try to explain why the Internet can be so addictive. This will be just a brief presentation - it should take about 10 minutes. At the end of my talk, there will be time to discuss the topic. I would appreciate if you could keep your questions until then. But of course, if there is anything you do not understand as I go along, please, stop me at any time.

First, let me distribute these handouts. OK, now, before I begin, let’s take a look at the first page and a few questions which are there. Could you take your pens and write down the answers? Don’t worry, I’m not going to check them, it’ll be just for your use. Right:

The first one: 1) Do you spend more than five hours on the Internet per day? 2) Do you often refuse to meet your friends because your want to continue surfing the Internet? 3) Do you feel certain excitement before every use of the Internet? 4) Do you chat anonymously?

OK? If any of your answers is ´yes´, it means that you have one of the symptoms of the Internet Addiction Disorder and this presentation could be of interest to you. :-)

OK, let’s start with the definition. Internet addiction can be classified as a subtype of a Cyberspace Addiction (you have the definition of the Cyberspace Addiction just below the questions). It is defined as any online-related, compulsive behaviour which interferes with normal living and causes severe stress on family, friends, loved ones, and one's work environment. It is sometimes called Internet dependency or Internet compulsivity. Whatever the name is, it refers to behaviour that completely dominates the addict's life, that cannot be controlled and can be therefore possibly harmful.

Internet addicts give the Internet priority over any other company or activity. The Internet becomes the organizing principle of the addicts' lives. The addicts are willing to sacrifice what they like most in order to preserve and continue their behaviour. Well, the fact that you are here suggests, that none of us is a real addicts. :-)

OK, let us move on to the symptoms. First I have to say, that no single behaviour pattern defines an Internet addiction. These behaviours, when they have taken control of addicts' lives and become unmanageable, include: compulsive use of the Internet, a preoccupation with being online, lying or hiding the extent or nature of your online behaviour, and an inability to control your online behaviour. In general, they comply with patterns of ANY type of addiction, such as (1) neglecting important things in one’s life because of the addiction; (2) disrupting your relationships with important people in your life; (3) getting defensive or irritable when people criticize this behaviour; (4) feeling guilty or anxious about what you are doing; (5) being secretive about or trying to "cover up" this behaviour; (6) or the inability to cut down.

For those who are interested, there are two theoretical approaches on page 2. They are by Lynne Roberts and Ivan Goldberg. What these people are saying is: if your Internet use pattern interferes with your life in any way you may have a problem. In addition, if you find that you are using the Internet as a means to regularly alter your mood you may be developing a problem. It is important to note that it is not the actual time spent online that determines if you have a problem, but rather how that time you spend impacts on your life.

Basically, there are three theoretical patterns of the Internet use: the first one is the healthy one, where face-to-face life is integrated with your cyber life, and you do not over-enjoy anonymous chat; the second one is an unhealthy use where face-to-face life becomes dissociated from cyber life; but the third one, the pathological use is really dangerous. At this stage people lose their jobs, quit school, or are divorced by their husbands and wives.

Right, now, let’s draw our attention to types of Internet addiction. Basically, there are three: addiction to chatting, to online shopping and to cyberporn. As you may guess cyberporn or cybersex addiction is the most common forms of Internet addiction. The widespread availability of sexual content online has given rise to a new form of sexual addiction and almost 60% of the cases of online compulsivity are related to sexual matters.

Gender influences the types of Internet addiction too. No wonder. Well, as I mentioned before, men tend to seek out dominance and sexual fantasy on-line, while women seek out close friendships, romantic partners, and prefer anonymous communication in which to hide their appearance. Apart from cyberporn, men are more likely to become addicted to online games, and gambling, while women are more likely to become addicted to chatting, instant messaging, eBay, and online shopping. It seems to be a natural conclusion that attributes of gender played out in Cyberspace parallel the stereotypes men and women have in our society. And now, the final and most important part: What Makes the Internet So Addictive?

Internet addiction can be understood by comparing it to other types of addictions. Individuals addicted to alcohol or other drugs, for example, develop a relationship with their "chemical(s) of choice", by which I mean, a relationship that takes precedence over any and all other aspects of their lives. Addicts find they need drugs merely to feel normal.

In Internet addiction, a parallel situation exists. The Internet, like food or drugs in other addictions, provides the "high" and addicts become dependent on this cyberspace “high” to feel normal. They substitute unhealthy relationships for healthy ones. They opt for temporary pleasure rather than the deeper qualities of "normal" intimate relationships. Internet addiction follows the same progressive nature of other addictions. Internet addicts struggle to control their behaviours, and experience despair over their constant failure to do so. Their loss of self-esteem grows, fuelling the need to escape even further into their addictive behaviours. A sense of powerlessness pervades the lives of addicts.

Another point is in its easy access. The society pushes everyone to work with the Internet, so people can feel that it is the society to be blamed. The first steps can be also very cheap, like using the Internet at work. And what is more, the Internet is so broad that it can seem to satisfy all physical and psychical needs.

The next important issue is connected to the fact, that majority of Internet addicts also suffer either from other addictions, mainly to drugs, alcohol, smoking, and sex, or they suffer from emotional problems such as depression and anxiety-related disorders and often use the fantasy world of the Internet to psychologically escape unpleasant feelings or stressful situations. Recent estimates suggests that five to ten percent of the population of developed countries are Internet addicts. Ok, that is all I planned to say today. In brief, I was talking about the Internet Addiction Disorder which is a compulsive use of the Internet. We suggested that it is not the time spent on the Internet but the way it is spent.Then we mentioned some typical symptoms and touched on the area of different types, where cyberporn, gambling, chatting, and e-shopping were the most common types of addiction and we concluded that the Internet can be so addictive because it seemingly satisfies all our needs. Despite all I have said, let me conclude with one contradictory idea which says that Internet Addiction Disorder is only a temporary addictive behaviour that many of us experience as newcomers to the world of the Cyberspace, but great majority of will get tired of it in a few months, a year or two and then we become reasonable users. OK, thank you for your attention and now, if you have any questions, I’ll be happy to answer them.

- Well, could I ask, what if I spend six or seven hours a day on the Internet because it is my work? - Exactly. That’s what I meant when I was saying that the time itself is not the decisive factor. Of course, if it is your work and it does not destroy your interpersonal relationships or your health,everything is fine.

- Your last idea was really interesting, so you are saying that Internet addiction actually does not exist? That everyone of us simply must get through such an experience? That sooner or later we get over it? But what if we lose jobs in the meantime or what if we lose our partners? - I am not sure, you are asking whether my last idea was actually a negation of the existence of IAD? -More or less, yes. - Well, it was not. We can lose jobs and partners because of the overuse of or temporary addiction to the Internet but so far, there are no real scientific data about the “real” theoretical basics of this particular disorder and that’s why I am saying, it is important to be aware of it as it can destroy you but from the scientific point of view, there are still some gaps, let’s say. Does that answer what you wanted to know? - Yes. Thank you.

- So, if there are no theoretical hypotheses, what is it all based on? - Great question. Well, this area is relatively young. It began in the mid-1990s when it started to be studied seriously after the publication of ´Caught in the Net: How to Recognize the Signs of Internet Addiction and a Winning Strategy for Recovery´ by Dr. Kimberly Young in 1998, there is a bibliography in your handouts. Since then scientists have conducted wide-ranging research and tests, although, most of the results are still of an inconclusive and contradictory character. So we are still waiting for more data and so far, the majority of studies and theories are based on “general addiction” theories and symptoms and tests.

- Isn’t there a problem that scientists are looking for more and more specific disorders? - Good point. Actually a lot of people are asking this question and some scientists argue that experts who study internet addiction do it just because they are addicts themselves. But, yes, to a certain extent I would agree that all addictions have similar symptoms. But if we would like to cure an addiction, we also need toknow some specific features or characteristics. But, yes, I agree.

OK, any other questions? No? Then, thank you very much for your attention once again and I hope we meet next week at the presentation of my colleague Standa Vaňásko.