Is the Onslaught making us Crazy - Assignment Example

HERE HERE YOUR HERE HERE Is the Onslaught making us Crazy? The article is to point out that the onslaught of information provided by the Internet, the volume of time spent by consumers on the Web, and the phenomenon of Internet addiction is causing physiological changes in the human brain. Dokoupil maintains the objective of pointing out that the Internet maintains the ability to create a type of psychosis which was not present prior to the advent of the Web. The Internet, according to the author, is largely harmful to human mental health which attributes to a new type of anxiety, compulsion and emotional distress.

The most important information provided is that the Internet becomes the foundation for a type of mental insanity by building dependencies, stress reactions to virtual stimuli, and can even create obsessive behaviors. The author uses the example of an individual who rose to fame with upload of a popular viral video and subsequently developed a psychotic condition when, previous to this notoriety, was a healthy and well-adjusted individual. This is because being exposed to disparate social criticism, esteem, an overload of information led to obsessive behaviors and even madness.

The author’s strength of argument is found when describing how the Internet can become an addictive object. The desire to be part of the information age, such as social media, creates unhealthy attachment and dependency which actually rewires a healthy brain to adopt unhealthy behaviors. The example of an infant child being neglected while its parents nurtured a virtual baby illustrates this lack of mental adjustment and ability to rationalize decision-making as it pertains to the Internet.

The weakness is that this phenomenon seems only to be relevant to those under the age of 50, a group that might, perhaps, have less need for digital information and digital socialization. This demographic being less influenced might illustrate that these negative mental behaviors can be controlled with more careful and wise self-insight. The main conclusion of the article is that with rational thought and self-control, the Internet can be a viable tool to enhance human lifestyle without necessarily causing significant mental disturbances.

The author reinforces, while offering staggering statistics and examples of the Internet’s ability to cause mental illness, that people are in control of their mental state and should recognize the Internet as merely a technological tool and stop allowing this modern instrument to be so emotionally and cognitively influential. People are in control of their mental condition and not the Internet and if they stay complacent in this fashion, more people will become compulsive and dependent on this technology.

It would seem that people would agree with the information. The author cites a study involving 750 people who reported that they checked their social network sites or text messages constantly and the results of a Stanford University study where people freely admitted that they were, indeed, addicted to their smartphones. The author states that the psychological rewards gained by being responsive to the digital environment are like dopamine, something physiologically difficult to resist. Since such a large portion of today’s society is regularly engaged with the Internet and other digital media, people would likely be able to relate to the author’s arguments and fully support that it maintains a high level of psychological influence on their lives and mental conditions.

My personal opinion of the Internet has not really changed as a result of this article. I have always maintained knowledge of human psychology and recognize that social opinion is very important to most people. It is even recognized in most psychological texts as a foundational aspect of human motivation which builds self-esteem. Therefore, it is not surprising that blogs, social media and text messages are highly important in helping people build their own sense of identity when making comparisons to others in the social environment.

There is likely a strong emotional stimulation as a result of digital media exposure and social sentiment online, therefore the concepts of why the Internet causes mental problems is not very surprising.