Internet addiction
From the AFP:
Thu Nov 2, 6:44 AM ET
BELGRADE (AFP) - A counselling centre has opened in Belgrade to help the growing number of Serbians who have become "addicted" to the Internet.
Treatment was offered to all those "who prefer using the Internet than any other daily activities, who isolate themselves from families and friends," one of the centre's founders, Milan Radovanovic, told the daily Vecernje Novosti Thursday.
Future "patients" could be found among those who spend more than four hours of their free time online, Radovanovic said, adding these were the first signs of "Internet addiction".
"As time goes by, these people stop any communication with the real world and turn towards their virtual friends," said Radovanovic.
Although such an addiction was considered typical for teenagers who play online games, the centre has already begun treating several older patients. Treatment usually lasts a year, said Radovanovic.
Only about 900,000 of Serbia's population of more than seven million inhabitants have an Internet connection, a recent survey done by the Centre for Policy Studies showed.
Most of the users were connected via their regular phone line, with only 2.5 percent using faster broadband services, the survey showed.
However, since Internet providers began offering their services in 1996, the most active group of users have remained those aged between 30 and 50, it showed.
The scary part is that, since my job is mainly to create or enhance web applications, I'm always on the internet (free time or not)... like 7 days a week. The only time I'm not online is when I'm on vacations, which is not too often since I live in America.
So I guess the thing is to have an offline life to be considered non-addicted?
Thu Nov 2, 6:44 AM ET
BELGRADE (AFP) - A counselling centre has opened in Belgrade to help the growing number of Serbians who have become "addicted" to the Internet.
Treatment was offered to all those "who prefer using the Internet than any other daily activities, who isolate themselves from families and friends," one of the centre's founders, Milan Radovanovic, told the daily Vecernje Novosti Thursday.
Future "patients" could be found among those who spend more than four hours of their free time online, Radovanovic said, adding these were the first signs of "Internet addiction".
"As time goes by, these people stop any communication with the real world and turn towards their virtual friends," said Radovanovic.
Although such an addiction was considered typical for teenagers who play online games, the centre has already begun treating several older patients. Treatment usually lasts a year, said Radovanovic.
Only about 900,000 of Serbia's population of more than seven million inhabitants have an Internet connection, a recent survey done by the Centre for Policy Studies showed.
Most of the users were connected via their regular phone line, with only 2.5 percent using faster broadband services, the survey showed.
However, since Internet providers began offering their services in 1996, the most active group of users have remained those aged between 30 and 50, it showed.
The scary part is that, since my job is mainly to create or enhance web applications, I'm always on the internet (free time or not)... like 7 days a week. The only time I'm not online is when I'm on vacations, which is not too often since I live in America.
So I guess the thing is to have an offline life to be considered non-addicted?
posted by Thao888 at
11/03/2006 03:20:00 PM
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