Assignment 10: Why are Avatars All Ano?

I’m really not one to play videogames of any kind. But, after taking this course and INFO 515 and hearing all the talk about Second Life, I was interested to try it out. I chose to play Second Life and there was a good amount I learned from this experience.

I chose one of the basic avatars, the City Chic girl, and I didn’t alter anything about her. I found it really interesting that of the first 12 avatars one could choose from, they were all thin and tall. They were pretty versions of several cultural types. There were no short, fat avatars to start out with, only pretty, skinny, black, white, Latino and Asian avatars. From the start of my Second Life experience, the options were affecting how I was going to interact in the space. It’s as if they were forcing me to be more attractive in Second Life to facilitate more interaction. I felt as though the creators of Second Life expect lonely, non-social people to use their game, and so they help them along by initially giving them a sexy or really pretty avatar.

Since the avatars are all good looking and tall—the specific characteristic Lee and Bailenson (2007) studied, there were definitely similarities between “The Proteus Effect” study and my experience. I definitely walked closer to the other avatars and I definitely wanted to facilitate conversation, but I don’t think I took those actions solely because I had a good-looking avatar, I think because I was in Second Life for an assignment, and not for free enjoyment, I also was doing those things. Additionally, I didn’t have the option to have a short, fat avatar (I didn’t explore the options to alter my avatar within the different world, so this is strictly based on the initial avatar choices) so, it’s possible that if my avatar wasn’t as good-looking I would have acted differently within Second Life.

As the Lee and Bailenson say, the term the Proteus Effect means “an individual’s behavior to conform to their digital self-representation independent of how others perceive them.” Without the option for avatars with different body types, which in my opinion is what leads to lower self-esteem and less confidence, there’s no way to tell if I would or wouldn’t have conformed to my digital self-representation in Second Life.


Below is a picture of three examples of girl avatars in Second Life, just so you can fully understand what I mean.

Just Google it!

Google.com is the answer to all my problems. What else do you need? When I'm having trouble remembering that econ equation during my problem set, I google it. I don't even bother looking through my text book; that would take too much time and effort. When I can't remember the name of the song I heard on the radio and have been meaning to download, I google it. What's the weather going to be like today? Google has all the answers, not to mention my homepage and a spot on my favorites.
Caplan (2004) defines Problematic Internet Use as resulting in "maladaptive cognitions and behaviors." It creates a burden on your outside life and evolves into excessive and compulsive use. Caplan provided three components of his theory that result in a cycle of problematic internet use.
1. Individuals with psychosocial problems hold negative perceptions about their social competence.
2. These individuals prefer online interactions because it is less threatening.
3. Preference for online interactions leads to excessive and compulsive online interaction.

Google.com is an easy way to get pulled into this cycle because of its amazingly diverse realm of information. Even when I'm trying to get to Google Scholar to do research for a paper, I find myself getting distracted by other options like the videos and photos.

Assignment 9: Away Messages

AIM can be a virtual quick sand for some unfortunate users. For this reason you will rarely if ever find me signed on to AIM but if you do you can bet that I am checking everyone of my buddies away messages incessantly until my paper is due in the next hour and I have successfully written only the first sentence. AIM is a great tool for many to stay in touch with family and friends, multi-task, talk to several people at once and just stay connected in general. But for some AIM, particularly incessant away message stalking, can lead to problematic internet use (PIU), especially interfering with productivity and academics.

Wallace (1999) attributes certain properties of the internet to increased PIU. In the case of away message checking operant conditioning and maintenance of virtual presence are most relevant. Operant conditioning describes when a behavior is rewarded with a variable schedule, the behavior is more difficult to extinguish. One of the most addictive factors of AIM away messages is the possibility of constant change and update. Even if you have already checked everyone’s away message twice over there is always the possibility of being rewarded with a new status or quote to read in an updated away message. This possibility perpetuates the desire to stalk away messages and makes it seem as though wasting all that time was worthwhile. In addition, maintenance of virtual presence plays a big role in the PIU associated with away message checking. Because AIM is interactive and stalkers are also able to put up away messages and presumably change them often. With the idea that others will be checking their updated status with as much dedication as they would be themselves, changing their away message serves as another rewarding experience.

The online cognition scale from Davis et al predicts PIU on certain dimensions of an individual. In the case of away message stalking distraction and procrastination may be the most prominent. For most, myself included, problematic internet use occurs most when there are other, less exciting tasks in front of us that we do not want to do. Away messages are incredibly distracting especially because of their property of operant conditioning and especially in those that are prone to procrastinate. Who hasn’t claimed that they’ll just look once at some away messages and then be able to continue on with that paper? In addition, diminished impulse control plays a role in away message stalking. I have found myself unable to not click on a buddy if a little box in the corner of my screen has appeared telling me they are away. The ease and the quickness of checking makes impulses that much more difficult to deny. Finally loneliness and social comfort are factors of an individual that affect away message stalking. Those that feel lonely are more likely to check away messages and most likely perpetuate that feeling and a feeling of social comfort is also provided by the fact that individuals can know what people are doing and feel somewhat connected without having to step outside of a comfort zone and engage in synchronous chat or face to face encounter.

Caplan describes problematic internet use as maladaptive cognitions and behaviors involving internet use that result in negative academic, professional, and social consequences. Behavior relating to excessive use, spending too much time online, and compulsive use, an inability to control the amount of time spent online often accompanied by guilt, are indicators of PIU. AIM away messages can certainly perpetuate these behaviors in many individuals. Inordinate amounts of time are spent compulsively checking for updates often with feelings of “why did I do this” if no reward is received in the form of a new away message. The affordances of internet interaction that are described that are factors in away message stalking are greater anonymity and less perceived social risk. The idea that a certain person does not know that you have checked his or her away message ten times in the last five minutes spurs the behavior to reoccur. This same idea comes into play in less perceived social risk. Knowing that people are not aware of your behavior in addition to feeling like you have a better idea of what they are doing significantly increases the feeling of comfort in continuing the away message checking. Being able to mediate online interactions with the help of away messages and the information that they can sometimes provide can diminish the perceived social risk that one may feel in communicating through another medium.

For some individuals away message stalking can become problematic and interfere with academic life or stunt social encounters but it is a combination of both the factors and affordances of the internet/ AIM and the individuals factors and partiality to online mediated communication that can push this behavior from innocent amusement to problematic behavior.

9 Celebrity Gossip Blogs

For this assignment I decided to analyze how celebrity gossip blogs can easily lead to Problematic Internet Use (PIU). PIU, according to Caplan, is maladaptive cognitions and behaviors involving Internet use that result in negative academic, professional, and social consequences. Checking celebrity gossip blogs is something that I personally do everyday, and is an activity that, if abused or done by a person with certain social predispositions, can lead to PIU. Sites such as Perez Hilton and Just Jared offer users a 24/7 glimpse into the latest celebrity news. These sites often provide humorous commentary and are updated throughout the day. Much like other blogs, they allow viewers to comment on the entry, usually with no type of censorship. These features of celebrity gossip blogs make the potential for PIU great among its users. This constant access and updating can cause people to check the site much more than necessary. Additionally, the commenting feature allows people to attempt to boost their social competence, sometimes unsuccessfully.

Caplan’s model of Problematic Internet Use highlights two main factors that may lead someone to excessive use – psychosocial problems and Internet affordances. These factors certainly apply to the dangers of celebrity blogs. As mentioned earlier, someone with low social competence and other psychosocial problems can turn to the anonymity of the Internet to try do deal with those problems. You can see this on the comment walls of celebrity blogs when there are vulgar and sometimes even threatening messages posted back and forth between users. Also, the affordances of Internet interaction are important to consider. For example, there is a greater control over self-presentation, there is less perceived social risk, and less social responsibility. These affordances can help lead someone who reads celebrity gossip blogs to PIU. Specifically, someone may use these affordances to justify not going to the grocery store and picking up the latest magazine. Checking the blogs may overtake someone’s real-life social interactions, causing them to use the Internet excessively.

The main unique property of celebrity gossip blogs is that they are constantly being updated throughout the day. Users can check the site several times and find something new every time. This can easily to excessive use by the viewer. Another unique property is the commenting feature. This allows the user to actually influence what is on the site, and make a personal contribution. This feature can cause a person to constantly make an imprint upon the site in order to boost social competence, leading to PIU.

Comment 1 and Comment 2

9. Blogging

Problematic Internet Use (PIU) is defined as problematic behavior related to too much time online. One online activity that I find can be associated with PIU is blogging. I decided to use this internet space as my example after observing Google group members last week. Not all bloggers are problematic internet users, but as observed in several groups, some people constantly post and respond to comments. The reason that these blogs can lead to PIU is due to both the affordance of the online space and psychosocial issues.

Wallace explains that operant conditioning and maintenance of virtual presence are two key attributes of the internet that can lead to PIU. Operant conditioning is when a behavior is rewarded with a variable schedule it is more difficult to extinguish. This is true with blogging because once you post, you never know when someone else will respond to your message (the reward). Maintenance of virtual presence is the idea that in this online space, the more time you spend, the more people know you and therefore the more you become part of the group. The more time you spend in your blog posting about to other people’s thoughts and relating to them, the more you will get to know the other members. Davis et al. predicted individual differences such as loneliness/depression, social comfort, and distraction/procrastination promote PIU. In the case of blogs, sometimes people may turn to posting their thoughts online as opposed to any other way due their loneliness or inability to talk to people FTF. Social comfort is also relevant because with these blogs often individuals are not comfortable in a FTF social setting and therefore turn online. For example, there are blogs about feeling shy, depressed, sad. etc. People on the blog we observed explained they do not feel easy about talking to people FTF and sought advice online. Finally distraction/procrastination from a stressful event is another reason people blog.

Caplan’s model can also apply to bloggers. According to Caplan’s model, individuals with psychosocial problems hold negative perceptions about their social competence and therefore prefer online interaction. This preference leads to excessive and compulsive use, worsening the problem. In the case of bloggers, as I said before, not all bloggers classify as problematic internet users. The key is blogging excessively (quantity that exceed normal use) and compulsively (inability to control one’s online activity) can lead to PIU. One reason that a person may feel more comfortable blogging is because you can remain anonymous. In a blog, some people do reveal their names, while others use fake names to stay unknown. Also, online, there is removal of gating features. In other words, any physical or social flaw they may feel uneasy about FTF is not apparent in a blog. Sometimes blogs are actually for the purposes of helping individuals cope with these anxieties.

A unique feature of a blog compared to other spaces is that blogs are themed with certain topics. Sometimes these topics are individuals dealing with depression, shyness, etc. When people post excessively or compulsively on these types of blogs, it is easy to recognize how Caplan’s model is relevant.

9: Facebook

I've decided to go ahead and tackle the ultimate CMC experience, which could be used for practicallly every blog assignment so far. That's right, I'm here to talk about facebook! It's widely used by college students today on a large scale. There are a plethora of features and things to keep people interested, and it's well known that there are many who sit on facebook for gargantuan periods of time for a variety of reasons. The vast social possibilities, and tempting areas for selective self-presentation draw people in, and keep them there. What can be said for certain is that facebook can lead to very Problematic Internet Usage(PIU from now on).

Problematic Internet Usage occurs when a person spends enough time on the computer for it to be called an addiction. The internet usage starts to effect other parts of their life in a negative way. This type of obsession easily takes place with many users on facebook. They get drawn into the medium of being able to post pictures, write on walls, poke, grab new applications, write notes, change their status, send messages, and lose touch with reality. You will often find people spending grossly larger amounts of time using facebook than they had originally planned, or stay on hoping something will change for hours at a time due to their addictions.

Caplan’s(2004) model on problematic internet usage states that those who have psychosocial problems will have more negative perceptions about their ability to socialize in real life. This, in turn, causes them to prefer a more mediated form of communication like CMC due to its lack of non-verbal cues, and unthreatening nature. This leads to some of the internet addiction and problematic usage we see today including some on facebook. There is many a lonely stalker on facebook, too scared to try FTF interaction, but still able to poke/message/application random people who they may not have had much contact with before. However, due to the extremely social nature of facebook as a medium, it can be assumed that this theory does not always apply to the problematic usage we see on facebook regularly.

Youtube

As Caplan defines Problematic Internet Use to be “maladaptive cognitions and behaviors involving Internet use that result in negative academic, professional, and social consequences,” it is evident that there are many online activities that fit this definition. Caplan, whose research followed the conclusion that individual differences seem to play an important role in Problematic Internet Use, as reached by Davis, Flett, Besser (2002), understands Problematic Internet Use to be a combination of both individual dispositions that may influence individuals toward problematic Internet activities, and the affordances provided by Internet interaction. In Caplan’s “Theory of Problematic Internet Use and Psychosocial Well-Being,” he claims that individuals with psychosocial problems perceive themselves to have low social competence, which leads to preferences for Internet action, which subsequently results in further psychosocial problems. This model, which implements many of the concepts put forth by Wallace, such as Locus of Control and Maintenance of Virtual Presence ultimately establishes the affordances of Internet interaction for individuals with perceived weak social skills. In light of the research put forth by Davis (2002) and Caplan (2004), it is evident that there exist problematic Internet use activities that are due to both psychosocial issues and the affordances of online psychological spaces. One activity that is associated with Problematic Internet Use is definitely youtube browsing.
In light of the more serious Problematic Internet Uses, such as gambling and pornography, which may present far more serious real-life consequences than does youtube browsing, youtube browsing nonetheless is a good example of a Problematic Internet activity. Individuals who procrastinate on Youtube definitely create negative consequences for themselves in their academic, work, and social settings. Given that both individual traits and the affordances provided by Youtube account for its problematic nature, elements of Wallace’s, Davis’s, and Caplan’s work apply. According to Wallace’s locus of control, which is the degree to which one believes he or she has control over his or her circumstances, and Davis’s diminished impulse control and procrastination, it is clear that an individual’s respective ability to avoid procrastination on youtube greatly affects his or her vulnerability to problematic internet use. Additionally, according to Davis’s study on Problematic Internet Use, social comfort is an indicator of problematic Internet use. The fact that many individuals find great comfort in youtube contributes to its problematic nature. Central to the notion of Problematic Internet Use is the distinction of excessive use and compulsive use, which Caplan does in his 2004 study. Defining excessive use to be the quantity of use considered by participants to exceed normal, usual, planned amount of time online, and compulsive use to be the inability to control one’s online activity along with guilt about lack of control, it is clear that either definition represents problematic internet use. Though compulsive use is more classically associated with various addictions, excessive Internet use on youtube will definitely create negative real-life consequences. Also, though loneliness and depression play a considerable role in Caplan’s Theory of Problematic Internet Use and Psychosocial Well-Being, which considers the psychological factors that contribute to a preference for mediated interaction, loneliness and depression seem to play a less significant role in youtube browsing.

9. Crackberries with a Side of Rehab

I remember it precisely: driving up to Nantucket two summers ago and actually having to pull over on the side of the road so my dad could check his blackberry. I remember my frustration that not only were we wasting time, but I had to sit there in silence, no radio, no talking, no nothing while he checked his precious email that could not wait.

Today, it seems that every one of all ages is practically walking around with their blackberries attached to their fingertips. These devices combine the most addicting ingredients: the Internet and the phone, producing an unhealthy combination for the user. A study conducted by New Jersey's Rutgers University School says “the Blackberry is fuelling a rise in email and internet addiction, with sufferers able to survive only a few minutes without checking for new mail.” Although the blackberry was one praised as a way for the demanding businessmen to be able to check his email anytime and anywhere, Sinead McIntyre notes that it has come to the point where “blackberry email devices can be so addictive that owners may need to be weaned off them with treatment similar to that given to drug users, experts warned today.” The bottom line is that these “crackberries” are becoming a danger to our mental health.

The addiction of these blackberries lies in the addiction that stems from the Internet itself. To begin with, the Internet’s initial attraction is how it allows people to escape the reality of life and be whomever they want. However, it is more than just mere attraction, the addiction to the Internet comes from its specific properties including the idea of operant conditioning and the maintenance of virtual presence is why these people fasten their blackberries to their hands. These include synchronous chat, variable rewards and behaviors, as well as the desire to be constantly in touch. With the new uses for the Internet including dating, it is creating a dependency taking us away from our reality and into an alternate, hazardous one.

In some ways, Caplan’s model does relate to this addiction. Those individuals who do possess more psychosocial problems will prefer online communication and interaction because it is less threatening and, therefore, will ultimately take part in excessive compulsive online interaction. This continuous cycle can be applied to their addiction to blackberries where this less ominous environment can consume their lives, however, another important part of the addiction of these blackberries is because people become addicted to their work. Today, the consultant or professor is becoming the doctor, always on call, always connected in case of an “emergency.”

All I know is that when I went to visit my sister this weekend and see her cool new life in New York City, I noticed that this chic life did not come without a handy-dandy blackberry attached to her newly manicured fingers. Does growing up mean becoming an excessive, compulsive blackberry addict? And will there be “crackberry” rehab centers in our future?

9: Online Shopping Gone Bad...

Due to convenience and ease, the act of online shopping has become very popular. If you can think it, you’ll find it online. With online shopping you can immediately find out if your items are available and sometimes you can be offered free shipping with a minimum purchase. Online shopping includes activities such as clothing purchases, movie rentals, etc. Even for Cornell students, online shopping is useful for purchasing cheap textbooks that the Cornell store overprices or making an late night order when you become to lazy to make a phone call. As a result, online shopping can lead to problematic internet use, since it can be conveniently shipped to your door step.

Caplan’s theory of problematic internet use is described as a person having problematic behavior related to spending too much time online. First of all, he stated that individuals with psychosocial problems hold negative perceptions about their social competence (although it might not be true, they think believe it). For example, a person suffering anxiety might find it hard to leave their homes and face others. They constantly fear that other individuals may be looking or talking about them when they really aren’t. As a result, people with that problem are more likely to stay at home and potentially find online shopping useful to avoid leaving their homes. They can order everything they need to their door instead of having to interact with other people face to face. Caplan also claims that individuals with psychosocial problems prefer online interaction because it’s less threatening and they feel more efficacious. Once again, this supports what I mentioned earlier. An individual suffering from anxiety would find online shopping as less threatening than going out to shop for what they need. Online shopping doesn’t involve a salesperson and doesn’t involve others customers but just you and the company you’re trying to purchase something from. Only the companies know what you purchased but their intentions are just to make money from you, not what you purchase. When you make purchases in person, this is different because while you wait in line to pay, other customers will most likely look at what you’re purchasing because they’re bored waiting online. Finally, Caplan talks about a preference for online interaction will lead to excessive and compulsive online interaction which then worsens their problems at school, home, and work. As an individual with psychosocial problems realize the convenience of online shopping and the relief from interacting with others, they may increasingly shop online to the point they have a problem. The process is simple, you find what you want, provide your billing information, and then you wait for your shipment. The addiction becomes a cycle where people with psychosocial problems develop more severe psychosocial problems due to excessive, compulsive internet use (in this case, online shopping). It is especially harmful to online shop because individuals tend to lose track of online transactions with credit cards (so beware!).

Online shopping has unique features. Individuals can look for anything they want to purchase without stepping out of their homes or leaving their computer. In the previous sentence, it is important to recognize two features, purchasing ANYTHING and the fact that you won’t have to leave your home. Especially around holidays, many items you are looking for become out of stock in stores so the internet becomes very useful to find those items. In addition, the internet is always accessible and the websites are most likely always available (except under maintenance), so individuals can shop online any time of day. When I’m sick of doing work or I’m bored, I tend to “window shop” online, looking for things I want without making any purchases (just to make sure I don’t go broke). Also, many sites online include shopping guides where individuals can list what kinds of things they are looking for and the site gives results based on your preferences. Moreover, they can also compare the different items.

http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/just-google-it.html

http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/9-celebrity-gossip-blogs.html

9: Saving the World Through Wikipedia?

While browsing through random articles on Wikipedia, do you ever find yourself wondering “who the hell sits down and writes this stuff?” While I certainly feel that wasting countless hours browsing through this online encyclopedia is an example of problematic internet use (when virtually infinite information is at your fingertips, why ever leave your computer?), I believe that a much more severe instance of PIU is the addictive behavior of contributing to Wikipedia.

When a user contributes to Wikipedia, he or she can create articles, edit articles, or upload files (images, music clips) to help add to the collective knowledge of the database. One can do this anonymously with only the computer’s IP address being logged, or the user can use a free, registered account (with a username, password, and profile page) to make an unlimited amount of contributions.

The simplest definition of Problematic Internet Use is the activity of spending too much time online, leading to negative consequences in the user’s life. Most users I know make an edit here or there if they see something incorrect, but the bulk of the content comes from a small portion of the contributing population (these users make thousands to hundreds of thousands of edits!).

Those who actively write and edit Wikipedia articles this much are certainly spending massive amounts of hours interacting with the site—enough time to negatively impact their “real” lives. Now I can’t go and interview the top editors to see if they are lonely and depressed people (Caplan’s model suggests they are), but I am going to make the assumption that because they contribute so much edits (and time), their social lives are probably not too active. These people will definitely favor the online action of becoming the author or editor of encyclopedia articles—this role provides the user with a boosted sense of competence and efficacious action—all while preserving the internet affordances of FtF anonymity and control over self-presentation.

As an obsessive Wikipedia editor contributes more and more, he or she will enjoy this sense of accomplishment and start to view other contributors and the task at hand in a hyperpersonal manner. Thus, the editing behavior will seem increasingly important (often Wikipedians believe that creating a free, infinite knowledge pool will save the world), and it will become excessive and compulsive. Because there is no reward or end-result to contributing beyond knowledge-based philanthropy and self-gratification, a user can complete Caplan’s suggested cycle again and again. Excessive amounts of time dedicated to editing should cause the user to retract solely into his or her online existence and feel even more dedicated to Wikipedia.

However, as addicted to editing as some people may be, I still personally love and support Wikipedia. I just feel (very idealistically) that it will become a more accurate and useful tool if less people obsessively edit; and instead, the world population contributes equally.

Comment 1
Comment 2

Assignment 9: Online Shopping

Online shopping is an activity that can definitely lead to problematic internet use (trust me, I know). There are millions of items people can buy now without ever having to leave their homes. Websites have also made it easier to search for your favorite items and make the online shopping experience more pleasant. There are also tons of websites geared completely toward bargain shopping, making online shopping an option to almost everyone.

In the case of online shopping, I would have to disagree with Caplan’s (2004) theory that leads to problematic internet use. This is because when you shop online, you’re not really interacting with anyone else, and the things you buy will be seen by people in the real world, not online. I think the four dimensions that Davis, Flett, and Besser (2002) came up with to predict problematic internet use are more applicable to online shopping. One of these dimensions is diminished impulse control, which can be costly when combined with retail stores online. People who are lonely, another dimension, might turn to online shopping because they are looking for material things to fill in for that loneliness. The third dimension is social comfort, and this can apply to online shopping if people feel that having the latest trends and gadgets will help them fit in. And finally, online shopping is a great source of distraction and procrastination, the fourth and final dimension, even if you don’t buy anything.

I also don’t see the affordances of Internet interaction coming into play for online shopping. This is because again, you are not interacting with anyone else, there are no other people making you feel like you are a better person online than in the real world. Online shopping is one instance in which I think the Internet properties are more important than the individual ones. People can browse millions of items for as long as they like, which is not possible when shopping offline, and there are many more places online to find cheap or sale items, making it affordable to more people. Take it from a person who has bought one too many pairs of shoes online in an attempt to put off doing homework, if left unchecked, online shopping can lead to problematic internet use.

Assignment 9. Gambling.

An online activity that can lead to Problematic Internet Use is gambling. A few examples of different games one can play online are: card games, bingo, and horse racing. If someone wants to participate in one of these online games, assuming they are of twenty-one years of age, they create an account directly connected to one of their credit cards. If one wins playing one of these online games, their winnings typically come in the mail in the form of a check. My father and my grandmother once a week participate in gambling online. They opened an account on a horse racing website, where they place their bets online and watch the race live on the television. The account is directly connected to my father’s credit card and once in awhile a check comes in the mail.

Although my dad and my grandmother bet the horses online, their form of online gambling is different from most other forms of online gambling. Since my father and grandmother bet on live races, there is no 24/7 access. One can play card games or bingo any time of any day they want to. This feature of online gambling can lead to Problematic Internet Use. Another characteristic of the online gambling psychological space that leads to PUI is that physical money is not changing hands. Since, money is being withdrawn from your credit card connected to your account, losing money is happening invisibly.

Caplan’s model states that individuals with psychosocial problems hold negative perceptions about their social competence. Caplan states that this leads to these individuals preferring online interaction because it is less threatening and they feel more efficacious. Preference for online interaction leads to excessive and compulsive online interaction, which worsens their problems. The cycle continues and becomes more and more detrimental. This could apply to online gambling but applies much more intensely to other online activities, specifically areas where there is direct interaction with other individuals. Online gambling does not center upon interacting with others online, therefore Caplan’s model applies but not so intensely.

There is one very unique property about online gambling. Although all the online gambling spaces require that people are twenty-one years of age, many people lie and gamble illegally underage. Twenty-one is the legal age for gambling for a reason, people under twenty-one are more likely to not know when to stop gambling. Younger people cannot control themselves with the temptation of winning millions of dollars even though that is very, very improbable. People under twenty-one who gamble online are more likely to have Problematic Internet Use because they get “addicted” to the thought of possibly winning a large amount of money.

9 Why talk about it if you can blog about it?

Consider the effects of writing a blog and reading blogs. In order to participate in those two activities, some time is required. In those 10 minutes spent reading a post and then forming a comment, you could easily have made yourself a sandwich or skimmed over a section in a textbook. Unfortunately, when someone doesn't have this time and continues to participate, negative consequences can result. This is characteristic of Caplan's definition of problematic Internet use as resulting in negative academic, professional, and social consequences.

Caplan describes excessive use as use exceeding normal, planned time online. If an individual plans to spend a certain amount of time catching up on a blog or writing a new blog entry, it is very easy to exceed the allotted time. It's true that many blogging front ends allow saving of a draft copy and you can always bookmark an entry to read later. However, it is often easier to blog a little longer in order to complete the train of thought. During the course of blog writing, the user may proceed into a rant. A common result is continuous ranting without considering elapsed time. Similarly, when a user is reading a blog, he or she may become absorbed in an entry and exceed their original planned time. This excessive use is also characteristic of compulsive use, the inability for one to control one's online activity, along with guilt for lack of control. When an individual is too involved in reading or writing blog entries, the realization of excessive time spent online leads to guilt over the overdevotion to blogging. Excessive use and compulsive use are both characteristic of problematic internet usage.

In Caplan's model, individuals with psychosocial problems view themselves as more socially inept. This causes increased propensity for internet usage due to less threatening characteristics. Consequently, this leads to more actual internet usage, which further complicates the original psychological problems. For blog writers, blogging offers a venue to express themselves anonymously and more intimately with greater control over self-presentation. A blogger can present personal details without ever revealing his identity if he is posting to a blog under a pseudo-identity. These traits of blogging are affordances that Caplan believed lead to increased preference for internet usage. However, individuals may choose to blog in lieu of expressing their opinions in face to face social context. That decision leads to decreased self-disclosure in physical social interactions and negative social traits. For blog readers, blogging allows them to gain knowledge of social experiences via posts concerning events in the social lives of others. Due to the ease of self-publishing, devout blog readers can become engrossed in the opinions and experiences of random individuals. This leads to less personal experience and thus has a negative social impact.

Blogging can be considered an example of problematic internet use, but in the case of COMM 245, if we do not blog, it will hurt us academically. Therefore, there is no need to panic if you feel doing the weekly blog posts is becoming a chore. It isn't exactly problematic internet usage. Posts also force us to state our thoughts on topics discussed in class with the hope of bringing up similar discussion points in real life. However, if blogging allows expression of opinion in a computer mediated context, a drop in real life expression is expected. In this way, blogging can be examined both positively and negatively.

Comment 1
Comment 2

9. Youtube

Ahoy

For this assignment, I decided to consider excessive procrastination on youtube. I don't think this is one of the most problematic overuses of the internet, but it's one that probably does cause some problematic use of the internet. We often use youtube for things like procrastination when there's too much work to do. In fact, I think that youtube is more addicting than even facebook, although everyone has his or her own opinion.

Why is youtube more problematic than facebook? I think youtube functions almost like a support system in the model proposed by Walther and Boyd. It's similar to the way TV is more popular than hanging out with friends. Youtube is always there - it's your friend 24/7 and it never has prelims to study for or classes to wake up for or essays to write. In other words, it's very accessible, which is one of the characteristics of online support. Also, you can watch whatever you want comment on anything anonymously. And another significant fact about facebook is that it offers content on absolutely any subject for free, meaning that it scores higher in the social distance category.

Does this mean that youtube can be seen as a source as support for us when we're down? On those nights where nobody is around, or when you're feeling down cause you have way too much work to do (only making the situation worse, because you're going to procrastinate more on it), youtube feels like the only way we can relieve our stress. It's a sort of emotional support in my opinion, though not in the conventional sense.

And naturally, when we depend on something like youtube for emotional sustenance, there's always a chance that PIU develops as proposed by Caplan. The first time we use youtube, it's there to relieve our stress and we're grateful for it, and after a while we continue on our way. Then another night comes when we have a lot more work, and we depend on it a little more. Then before you know it, we regularly rely on youtube to distract us from our work.

How is this similar to Caplan's model? Well first, we have burdensome problems that we need to take care of (part 1). Then we go to some CMC source for relief (part 2). And then we find how useful and helpful this diversion can be, so we rely on it more (part 3). This leads to a cascade effect similar to the one proposed by Caplan. Our real-world problems cause greater emotional needs that we feed more and more through these reliable CMC sources.

And if we woke up the next morning and found that youtube wasn't there anymore, it would probably not cause a terrible psychological epidemic, but we would definitely find it harder to get through those long nights of work.

(Like tonight)

peace out.

ashish

7: Addiction to Second Life

One online activity that can lead to Problematic Internet Use is participating in an online phenomena known as Second Life. Second Life, created by a small boutique company in San Francisco has elements that can make it an addictive online space that can be problematic for some people. It is basically an online world where people can create avatars of themselves and hold a “second” life online. According to an internet blog about Second Life addiction, “you simply roam around, chat with people, play games, buy land, build homes, create objects you may want to sell for the local currency (Linden Dollars) and so on.” Caplan (2004) describes problematic internet use as being excessive, where people exceed their planned amount of time online, and compulsive, where people cannot control their online activity and have guilt about their lack of control. Certain people display both of these factors when they are on Second Life, qualifying it to be a problematic use of Internet.

One of the factors that makes Second Life to be addictive is that a user has to be online at all times to play the game and interact with others. Wallace explains this property of the internet as being maintenance of virtual presence, where one has to be in the virtual space to control characters or support other team members. I saw an example of this being problematic when one of my friend explained to me how his neighbor would not take care of her kids because and ignored her kid various times just to play this game. Also, I found another example of this on a Second Life blog which stated, “My wife has been staying up all night on SL. Worse, she has started lying about it…Recently she missed work to sleep all day because she was on SL all night.”

Other aspects that would make Second Life problematic is explained by Davis et. al. (2002)’s individual factors such as social comfort and diminished impulse control. Social comfort is when one uses Internet as a tool to increase one’s social network. One of the features on Second Life that exhibits this is how you can have people over and play games with them. Furthermore, diminished impulse control can be seen when some people blow off their children and jobs to spend more time on this “fantasy life”.

Caplan (2004)’s model, “suggests that lonely and depressed individuals may develop a preference for online social interaction, which, in turn, leads to negative outcomes associated with their Internet use.” (pg 625) This does hold true for Second Life as it gives individuals chance to create their own characters, displaying greater control over self presentation, and through CMC chat they can have more anonymity. If one is depressed and lonely they will hold negative perception about their social competence and Second Life gives them a chance to present themselves in an anonymous way. Moreover, this interaction can lead to a viscous cycle and present a problematic internet usage which will affect their school, life and work environment. And by reading the blog examples given above we do know that interactions on Second Life do affect real life for some people.

All in all, Second Life is a very fun but addictive tool where one can get absorbed and forget their real life. A unique property of this space is how closely it resembles real life, since people can have jobs, houses and even friends on this space. As one blogger puts it, “In the past few days, my character has bought land, designed and built a home, had guests over, gone to a strip club, gone to a dance club, bid for new land in an auction, participated in movie trivia games for Linden Dollars, and much more.” What a life!

The web address for the blog used above is:

http://elliptic.typepad.com/elliptic_blog/2004/01/second_life_add.html

9: Fantasy Football

Sunday morning is always the most stressful time. You’ve scoured all the stats: power rankings, the spread, home vs. away records, strength of schedule, injury updates, individual match-ups, est. Once the game turns on, it’s hard to concentrate. Rooting for your favorite team takes a backseat to flipping through the channels to catch glimpses of your fantasy studs dominating their respective games. You jump every time the live coverage segway into Boomer and Shannon announcing a ‘gamebreak.’ Every commercial you run up to the computer to get the live score updates. Fantasy football is an addiction.

Fantasy football is a phenomenon that has gripped the sports world practically since the creation of the Internet. The concept is that you get to pick your own ‘fantasy team’ from all the players in the league in a draft format against your competitors. Every week, you decide which players are going to start and which are going to sit out. These players get points based on their performance. Touchdowns, yards, and field goals are good for your team while interceptions, fumbles, and sacks are bad. Fantasy football is tied directly to the Internet. Sites like Yahoo keep track of the statistics and tabulate the scores. Yahoo even offers software that gives you life updates, which allows the ‘owners’ to know exactly how many points they need their last wide receiver to get in order for them to win their weekly match up. Other sites charge people for ‘inside’ tips on who to play each week.

Problematic Internet Use(PIU) is defined as “Maladaptive Cognitions and behaviors involving internet use that result in negative academic, professional, and social consequences”(Caplan 2004). Fantasy football is an online space that fosters such an obsession in individuals. For the devoted fantasy footballer, there is an infinite amount of resources available. Sunday has always been a source of tension in relationships. For guys, and some girls, it’s a holiday every time their team takes the field. Fantasy football perpetuates this feeling. It gives the individual more of an emotional (and sometimes economical) investment in the sport. Often times, people would rather stay hovered over their computer and TV than go outside and enjoy some good old-fashioned sunshine. This can lead to dire social consequences. When money is involved, it is a form of online gambling, and provides a forum that is primed to take advantage of individuals with impulsive and addictive personalities. Caplan predicts that those that compulsively check an online Internet space will form a negative opinion about FTF communication. While this is partly true, as people are in leagues with complete strangers and trash talk on their discussion boards in a way that they would not normally in FTF interactions, often the best fantasy leagues are the ones that include a group of tight knit friends or work associates in which most of the trash talking occurs outside of the online arena.

Wallace’s Operant Conditioning causes players to hover over their computers while constantly clicking the ‘refresh page’ button in order to get up to date statistics. From the NFL website or ESPN. Because of the delay from live action to online updates, people will continue to constantly refresh their page, each time thinking that the next will be when they find out if their running back ran it in on fourth down from the one yard line.

COMMENTS
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=7102678997917330260&postID=4310485694378380811
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=7102678997917330260&postID=1985696296616542174

Assignment #9: Away Message Stalking

Away message stalking allows people to check what their “buddies” are doing throughout the day. A person’s buddy list can include many different people—including those who are our closest friends to those who we only used to be friends with in middle school to those who we do not really even know. Some people change their away message status frequently, while other people leave the same message up all day, apparently still “sleeping” from the night before. Away message stalking can be associated with problematic internet use (PIU) in some instances, but all stalkers do not necessarily have PIU. There are aspects of the internet associated with away message stalking that exist for everyone, but I think that there are individual differences between all stalkers that lead some people to develop PIU while others do not.

According to Wallace, there are certain properties of away message stalking that are related to the internet, such as operant conditioning and maintenance of virtual presence. Operant conditioning regards the rewarding of behavior with a variable schedule. With such an inconsistent reward schedule, the behavior is more difficult to extinguish. Finding an updated away message is the great reward for those who stalk down their buddy list. Because people post new away messages at different and unpredictable times throughout the day, away message stalkers are even more so drawn to continually check their buddy lists. The maintenance of virtual presence is also an associated factor of the internet that involves away messages. As opposed to just standing on the sideline while watching and checking status changes, away message stalkers are able to produce behavior and be apart of it as well. Away message stalkers have the ability to update their own away messages to keep others informed of their activities in the virtual AIM environment. These internet properties are present for all AIM users, but they seem to me to only have an especially problematic impact for those with individual differences that are associated with PIU. As maintained my Davis, Flett, and Besser (2002), PIU is predicted on the basis of four dimensions—diminished impulse control, loneliness/depression, social comfort, and distraction/procrastination—which I think can all be related to away message stalkers. The urge to check away messages can be especially common if a person is feeling lonely or is looking for a distraction from his responsibilities. Also, if a person is lacking in social comfort he will be more at ease if he can use AIM away messages as an online space to observe people instead of facing the fear of direct contact in face to face interaction.

In regards to Caplan’s model of problematic internet behavior, away message stalking is problematic for those who do so in excess, spending longer checking their buddies’ status than they had planned. The behavior is also problematic when stalkers compulsively check AIM away messages and their stalking obsessions later cause feelings of guilt. Caplan’s model theorizes that individuals with psychosocial problems and low social competence prefer less threatening interactions via internet as opposed to face to face, which in turn leads to compulsive use of the internet which connects again to psychosocial problems. This however, is a mediated connection because one must be low on social competence and have a preference for the internet in order for it to lead to problematic, excessive use. Thus I do not believe that all away message stalkers have issues with PIU, such as people who just have a preference for using AIM and the internet. It is people with individual differences specifically related to PIU, like low social competence and loneliness, that also have a preference for AIM as a means of social interaction, who will come to excessively stalk away messages.

Comments:
http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/9-facebook.html
http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/9-celebrity-gossip-blogs.html

9 Because One Private Jet Just Isn't Enough...

The term Problematic Internet Usage (PIU), as Caplan describes it, encompasses, “maladaptive cognitions and behaviors involving Internet use that result in negative academic, professional, and social consequences.” While for the most part this seems to indicate an addiction of sorts, I believe that Internet usage can be problematic in more than just the immediate way (compulsive behavior, psychological need, etc.). A form of Internet usage that has been causing more and more problems for people that engage in it is Peer-to-Peer (P2P) file sharing and so-called “illegal” downloading. These phenomena and their negative consequences are becoming more relevant at Cornell, as 16 students were served lawsuits for illegal file sharing activity.

Now, I personally do not believe that file sharing should be illegal, instead I think it really helps bands that don’t have the mass-market resources of big record companies and established acts, and that this free advertising is what truly scares the industry. However, for the present and the foreseeable future, the activity is going to remain classified as against the law. Because of this illegality and because of the increasing aggressiveness of the RIAA in pursuing even the odd infrequent downloader who just happened to be unlucky enough to import the wrong Metallica file, file sharing comes into Caplan’s definition of PIU through the “social consequences” part. No, we do not see people losing relationships and academic performance to the Internet with this phenomenon, as we do in online gaming or perhaps Facebook addiction. This online activity does, however, have a much different pull than gambling and Facebook. Namely, it offers us a chance to exercise some consumer muscle and only select tracks we might want to hear as opposed to buying an entire CD for just a few songs, combined with a lack of iTunes’ pesky Digital Rights Management software all for the low, low price of FREE. The opportunity to get something for nothing, while for the most part facing little exposure to real consequences (thanks to the perceived anonymity of the Internet) proves far too tempting for most casual users of file-sharing services. However, the damage being done to society by this heavily controversial issue is both tangible and intangible, and in both cases very real.

The students above each had the option to “settle” for the flat rate of $3,000 or face charges of $750 per song if they were sued and lost. For many, if not most, college students, this represents a rather daunting sum, when considered into the $160,000 we are already paying for the privilege of learning at Cornell. So file sharing, even when used very casually, can have very negative fiscal consequences and leave its user holding a very intimidating bag. Furthermore, the RIAA adopts a seemingly random policy of legal action, pursuing those users it can, oftentimes ignoring the bigger fish for the smaller ones just to prove a point. This hurts smaller, underexposed bands as explained earlier, and also fosters a sense of distrust between the consumer base and the artistry itself. How can we believe that a band is “all about the music” if they are so preoccupied with losing money to “illegal” downloading?

The issues around copyright infringement and file sharing are still the subject of much debate in the world right now and I encourage all of you to do more than just participate in it. Get involved. Become aware of both your rights and risks.

http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/9-harmless-or-harmful-look-at-online.html

http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/assignment-9-neverending-hunt.html

#9: WOW!

WOW! That is the online activity that I believe has taken over and ruined a many lives. I feel that the World of Warcraft can possibly lead to problematic internet use. I personally have never played WOW, but know several friends that are obsessed with this game. A couple of incidences that come to mind about WOW that leads me to believe it could lead to PIU are partly funny and partly worrisome. One such incident is when a friend wanted to finally beat a level of WOW he had been working on for several weeks, but the problem was that the next day he had his SATs. He stayed up all night to beat the level, fell asleep, overslept and missed the test. Another friend that played WOW on a regular basis was in college at the time and slowly started to miss more and more classes and stayed in his dorm room playing WOW. He finally got a wake up call about how WOW was consuming his life when he failed several of his classes.

Generally speaking, gamers who play WOW are stereotypically seen as pale nerdy guys who never leave their rooms and have no social skills because all they do all day is play WOW on the computer with their friends. Though I know some friends that play WOW in moderation and would not lead to problematic internet use, there are numerous incidences where it does lead to PIU.

As Caplan (2004) stated, PIU is “maladaptive cognitions and behaviors involving Internet use that result in negative academic, professional, and social consequences.” In the case of WOW, I believe that being on the computer playing for hours and hours definitely leads to negative academic consequences as the example of my friend failing classes above. Also, depending on the person’s age, I believe it can interfere with their professional career as well as strain social relationships. Many people that play WOW are guilty of excessive use. Some people are so dedicated to the game that they develop teams of people that do not even know each other and set “practice times” online to better their skills and abilities in the game.

One way that WOW could lead to PIU also deals with the personality type of the person playing WOW. If they feel loneliness in their lives, they are going to be more susceptible to the game because they will find comfort and a sense of belonging from his/her fellow WOW players. As we discussed in earlier lectures, the idea of being identified as part of a group is very strong. Being part of the in-group boosts an individual’s self confidence and therefore is a dangerous characteristic of WOW for at least the reason that being part of a group requires the individual to put in heavy time constraints and commitment.

Therefore, in general the game WOW can be a fun and enjoyable past time for individuals as long as it played in moderation and do not start to effect the academic, professional and social lives of the individuals.

COMMENTS:

http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/assignment-9-away-messages.html

http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/9-facebook.html

Assignment 9: The Never-Ending Hunt

The examples of possible online activities that lead to Problematic Internet Use that were listed on the description of Assignment 9 (porn, gambling, away message stalking) all have a negative connotation even when done in moderation. These are not the only problematic activities, though. We have all heard the saying “Too much of a good thing.” While people generally regard a thirst for knowledge as something to commend, the search for information on the Internet can certainly lead to PIU.

With the linkability of the Internet, especially on web sites such as Wikipedia where words in the description of one thing appear as links to their own pages, the ability to go from source to source is limitless.

When you need information for a specific purpose, you need to find the exact intelligence or statistics that will solve your problem. The catch is that you don’t know what site, page, or other source will give you the facts you need. This is where Wallace’s concept of Operant Conditioning comes into play. It’s possible that we’ll find our answer on the first website we look at it. It’s possible that that first site will have a link to the right site. It’s also possible that we will find what we’re looking for three hours and 30 web sites after our search began. But we don’t know which it will be. We keep searching and searching, thinking that just one more click will take us to our destination, and it’s hard to give up when the right answer could be around the corner. This is how a planned ten-minute information search can last for hours.

Sometimes, we look for information just for fun. This can be a problem too because we don’t know when something will pique our interest. Each page we visit could have a new, interesting link. This too can lead to knowledge gathering sessions that last hours.

Searching for information on the Internet can certainly lead to Caplan’s (2004) problematic behavior related to too much time online. People use the information search space of the Internet to excess when they spend longer than normal, or look for facts longer than they thought they would have to. Likewise, compulsive use is when people can’t control their search methods, and are unable to stop looking for a specific piece of data until they find it, or feel bad later when they realize how much time they wasted trying to find one little piece of information.

While porn, gambling, and Facebook can all cause problems online, part of what’s so dangerous about the internet’s addictive quality, is that it can cause issues in areas that are normally good for people, such as knowledge search.


Comments:

http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/9-celebrity-gossip-blogs.html

http://comm245red.blogspot.com/2007/11/youtube.html

9: Harmless or harmful? A look at online porn.

With the increase in internet popularity and internet users throughout the years, came an increase in the accessibility of online pornography. The ease of posting and watching a variety of videos for free, at any age, without having to walk into a store and risk being seen by someone, has greatly influenced the online-pornography trend. In our current society, the media portrays that people who partake in pornographic actions online are “bad” and are thus associated with Problematic Internet Use (PIU), or behaviors related to the amount of time spent on the internet. Infrequent internet users use information they receive from sensationalized news stories of dramatic incidents on the net to form strong impressions and attitudes towards a bigger picture, known as the availability heuristic principle.

Wallace attributes the anonymity, physical distance, and perceived lack of accountability in cyberspace to differences in the nature of pornography use and its effects on behavior. The individual factor of locus of control, and the internet factors of operant conditioning, maintenance on virtual presence, and newbie disease also contribute to the development of PIU with online pornography. The degree to which someone believes that they have control over a circumstance is known as locus of control. Davis et al. focused on this individual difference and formed an online cognition scale (OCS) that found that PIU is in fact influenced by a person’s diminished impulse control, amount of loneliness/depression, feelings of interpersonal social comfort, and desired distraction/procrastination. Internet pop-ups containing links and pictures of pornographic websites are related to operant conditioning because by clicking on one website, the reward of a link to another pornographic website appears. Web-cams used for pornography filming provide maintenance of virtual presence for users as they are accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Lastly, the amount of pornographic pop-ups and web-cam invitations received during a given time affect the fluctuation of this online activity especially after a first encounter, or newbie disease.

Caplan expanded the definition of PIU to maladaptive cognitions and behaviors involving internet use that result in negative academic, professional, and social consequences. If a person excessively and compulsively uses an online activity, they are considered to have adhered to the theory of PIU and psychosocial well-being. Those who suffer from psychosocial distress (i.e. Davis et al.’s four factors within the OCS) hold negative views about their FtF social competence and thus prefer online interaction because it is less threatening (i.e. do not risk running into someone while having pornography in their possession). This reinforced preference for online interaction contributes to excessive and compulsive use of the online activity thus worsening their psychosocial problems.

Mixed views of pornography use are definitely a unique property to this online activity. Some social scientists believe that the use of sexually explicit material is harmless because it can be a functional, healthy, and liberating way to provide education, erotic enhancement, an outlet for exploration, and entertainment. Pornography has also been used in some therapeutic treatment programs for sexual dysfunctions. On the other hand, many focus on the ethical and moral issues involved in pornography, especially those relating to the exploitation and objectification of women based on the notion that males are the principal users of this online activity. Should internet pornography be associated with PIU? I’ll let you be the judge.

Comment 1
Comment 2

9: Myspace Addict

Apparently not everyone is addicted to facebook. I noticed over the summer, that my single young coworkers preferred myspace (maybe we’re the facebook generation?). Granted, the employees maintained professionalism and never accessed the site at work, but one coworker in particular, “Bob,” always talked about it – whether it be the new people he met online, or what his friends were saying – to the point that it sounded like a real place where he was meeting people.

According to Wallace, myspace has the properties of the internet and individual differences mentioned in chapter 9. Operant conditioning, where a behavior is rewarded with a variable schedule, occurs on myspace when Bob checks his profile and sees that he has a new message. Maintenance of virtual presence is used when he displays selective characteristics of himself on his profile that he wants people to see. One, especially important aspect of myspace that he values most is locus of control, the degree to which he believes he has control over his circumstances. Since Bob is entering his late thirties and hasn’t been successful in finding a companion in the face to face realm, he has turned to myspace for help. According to Davis et al. (2002), Bob’s myspace use falls under loneliness and social comfort. Since Bob is shy, and fears rejection, he uses the internet as a tool to increase his social network, but this does not necessarily predict his internet use as problematic. Granted, he doesn’t compulsively check myspace, but based on Caplan’s theory, he has the potential to let is become problematic because he has negative perceptions about his social competence and prefers the less threatening characteristics of the internet. However, he has not allowed his online interaction to become an excessive and compulsive habit, which is where he breaks the cycle and prevents the negative outcomes from PIU.

The affordances of myspace are what mainly attract Bob to prefer online interaction. As discussed in the Hyperpersonal Model, in general, the internet offers greater anonymity, greater control, and more self-disclosure. For Bob, less social risk is probably the most important affordance that myspace has to offer because it relieves his psychosocial problem of social competence. With respect to myspace, it can be addictive because you can see peoples’ profiles, friend’s comments, view their friends, and see when was the last time they logged in to determine if they saw your message and if they did, why they did/didn’t reply. These aspects are open to all users, but not all of them have PIU, so for myspace to become an “addiction,” there are probably more inherent psychosocial problems in the individual that bring about the compulsive use.

comment1

comment2