New research lends weight to internet "addiction" claims

 

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Posted on 9 Sep 2008 at 12:39

Research carried out at a Canadian university has fuelled suggestions that internet dependence should be classified as a medical addiction. The Universit?e Montr? claims that internet addiction is a similar affliction to compulsive gambling and alcoholism.

Louise Nadeau, a professor at the university's Department of Psychology, said that compulsive gambling is only beginning to be addressed by medical health professionals, and warned that experts shouldn't take the same sluggish approach towards taking internet addiction seriously too.

"The problem isn't widespread but we know of serious cases in which teenagers don't leave the house, don't have interpersonal relationships, and have been isolated in front of their computer screen for the past two or three years, and only speak in the language of the characters they play with in network video games," she said.

"In a few years we'll have couples in therapy because the internet will have become their main occupation."

The Quebec Department of Health and Social Services set up an institute on addiction last year, which Nadeau heads. The institute intends to conduct epidemiological studies on addiction, evaluate the services available to patients, guarantee state-of-the-art practices, and document new forms of addiction.

While there is an abundance of evidence on the danger of compulsive gambling and alcoholism, Nadeau admits there is much to prove with regards to internet addiction.

"There is no reliable study or clinical data on the issue," she said. "We are starting from scratch."

A survey conducted in the Quebec health network concluded that hundreds of patients have consulted a professional about this issue. Researchers hope to further develop this data and determine the clinical threshold of addiction, establish how the disease evolves and elaborate intervention techniques.

Author: Dawinderpal Sahota