Addiction to the Internet has grown exponentially this year. A situation never seen before, which has been intensified by the current pandemic situation of Covid19. This is the result of several reports carried out by psychologists and disorder specialists who have analysed the context experienced from the start of lockdown to the present day. According to their studies, those most affected are people who live alone and minors. Today we explain how addiction to the Internet has impacted our society this year.
Internet addiction in 2020
In recent times, there has been a steady increase in the number of people who connect to the Internet and use it for both personal and professional purposes. However, the safety measures issued this year by the authorities to prevent the spread of Covid19 have changed the lifestyle of most of the population. As a result, this progression has advanced much faster than normal, encouraging technology abuse and leading to the emergence of dependencies, such as addiction to the Internet.
This Internet addiction, which has grown so exceptionally, is due to several causes that occurred in 2020 for sociopolitical reasons. Some of them are:
- Home confinement
- School closures and parents and children living together permanently
- The tendency to shop online due to fear of going out
- Layoffs, business closures and furlough schemes (ERTEs)
- Limits on gatherings to a set maximum number of people
- More time spent at home
- Remote work
- Teleconferences and calls over the Internet
- Perimeter and geographic restrictions
- Curfew
In light of these events, addiction to the Internet has grown more than usual in society, creating three trends. First, parents have become aware of the time their children spend browsing the Internet and the increase in their use. Second, new cases have emerged of people addicted to the Internet and technology in general. Third, abusive behaviour has been reinforced in individuals who already suffered from some type of similar addiction.
The main groups affected by Internet addiction have been teenagers, young people, minors and, mainly, gambling addicts. The first three groups have been characterised by spending more time browsing the Internet, on their mobile phones and playing video games. Meanwhile, the latter group—often people who live alone—has switched from in-person gambling to online gambling. As a result, they have fallen into excessive use of online casinos, betting portals and games that encourage addiction.
How much time do we spend browsing the Internet?
According to research carried out by Miguel Hernández University, the group most vulnerable to addiction to the Internet is minors. It is estimated that before the Covid19 pandemic, around 15% of them used their smartphone for more than 90 minutes a day to access social media, watch videos on YouTube, check email and/or browse the Internet. However, from the quarantine period onwards, this figure reached 73%.
On the other hand, the report “The impact of screens on family life during lockdown”, produced by Empantallados and the consultancy GAD3, mentions that during lockdown, 76% of minors used electronic devices with screens from Monday to Friday for almost four hours a day. In addition, one in two parents bought an item to be able to carry out their children’s classes (49%), for their work (29%) or for digital leisure (20%).
For three out of four parents, during lockdown screens were an opportunity to entertain their children during the working day. And according to the Empantallados study, 25% of them believe that technology has increased conflict with their children, and four out of ten think it is necessary to create disconnection habits.
As for minors’ activity linked to digital screens, the analysis by Qustodio reveals more details. In total, they spent 81 minutes playing a game on the device, 82 using TikTok, 75 minutes on YouTube, and only 15 minutes on educational platforms. According to a study by the University of Valencia and the Mapfre Foundation, in periods prior to the pandemic it was already the case that 15% of them engaged in excesses and even technology abuse. In addition, of all of them, it is estimated that 2.5% had a pathological addiction to the Internet. Therefore, the situation being experienced this year is even worse and may be high risk. Without the necessary protective measures and without good education, addiction to the Internet is a very likely reality.
CCAdicciones is a treatment centre for addictive behaviours. Our professional therapists can advise you and recommend the best solution for your problem. Contact us and we will support you in recovering a normal, healthy life.
