Internet addiction

Internet addiction, along with other problems of digitalization, has been a serious concern for scientists for years. And this is not surprising. After all, the information revolution, which began in the 1970s, culminated in the creation of a worldwide network, the Internet, which made it possible to exchange information on a global scale, unthinkable for previous generations.

To date, digitalization is occurring in virtually all areas of human activity, and this new, unprecedented experience, in addition to the obvious comfort and convenience, carries many dangers. Scientists in the most developed countries are increasingly raising these issues, understanding the irreversibility of the processes taking place.

In this article I will talk about some research, which, perhaps, will fundamentally change your attitude to information in general, and all kinds of gadgets in particular.

Internet Addiction and the Problems of Digitalization
When in 2001 the rapid development of the first smartphones began, no one could even assume the role they would play in people’s lives in just a few years. And today a full life of a modern person is basically impossible without a smartphone.

The volume of digital data doubles every two years. International research and consulting firm IDC predicted that from 2009 to 2020 the amount of world data will increase by 44 times, then the forecast was increased to 50 times, and now the figure is 55.

And it is not just abstract data, it is the data that we exchange one way or another.

Every month we exchange 1.5 trillion WhatsApp messages and more than 8 trillion emails. We post more than 2.5 billion pieces of content every day on Facebook alone, not to mention Instagram and other popular platforms.

So why has this become so important to us?

It turns out that information is as meaningful and vital to our brains as calories are to our bodies. However, while humanity visibly becomes obese with excessive caloric intake, not everything is so obvious with information obesity.

In ancient times it was said that «man is what he eats.» On the mental level, man is what he consumes in terms of information.

Now look carefully at the picture. On the left you see a scholarly article, and on the right you see the Instagram of a popular person. Tell me, if you had a few minutes of free time, what would you prefer to pay attention to?