6 ms·

Why such a focus of substances and no mention of the more common addictions such as video games, porn and social media?

by JimWestergren 5y ago

Cthulhu_ 5y ago
Probably because they're considered less harmful to your physical health and society as a whole.
- JimWestergren 5y ago
  Yes, ok. But such an article with such a title should at least mention them I think. Otherwise some people keep thinking it is normal spending hours daily on social media, or checking their phone 50 times a day. We should speak up and say that it is NOT normal.
  - openknot 5y ago
    It may be a writing constraint or decision by the editor to keep the article focused on alcohol and drug use, as addiction to "video games, porn and social media" may have different treatment approaches or signs of addiction (and would thus significant broaden the article's scope), though I agree with your last two sentences. For example, consider the criteria used to describe the signs of addiction: "You need an increasing amount of alcohol or drugs to feel a buzz or high. You feel an urgency to get the first drink or drug of the day. You experience a loss of interest in other activities and an increased desire to get ‘high’ or ‘buzzed’. You try to quit or cut down on the use of alcohol or drugs but can’t. You will do almost anything to get the drug or alcohol." You might feel an urge for these other addictive habits at the start of the day; experience a loss of interest in other activities; and try to cut down but can't. For the pull to experience an "increasing amount" of the activity for a high, that is plausible for porn (for some users, it's a want for more extreme content), but less so for video games and social media. It's also not immediately obvious—especially when compared to drugs and alcohol—that a user of video games, porn, or social media would "do almost anything" to satisfy the urge. The bottom line is that these behaviours, while addicting, have significant differences when compared to alcohol and drugs. Speaking from past writing experience, these would require the article to significantly broaden its scope, which may not have been possible due to editorial constraints (e.g. word count). It's also plausible that the original article may have been, "The first steps to respond to a potential alcohol or drug addiction," but the editor shortened it to a catchier "How to know if you're addicted."
  - crypt1d 5y ago
    You are nitpicking. Not every article about addictions and drugs needs to read like a disclaimer. Mentioning phone and social media addiction here is certainly not going to change anyone's mind - people tend to ignore facts that don't fit their worldviews.
- nunez 5y ago
  `s/less harmful/socially normalized/` Getting blasted by/constantly engaging with tweets all day and endless scrolling on Instagram/TikTok/Facebook are just "things that people do" nowadays. I've seen countless couples on dates where they spend a great deal of their time using their phones instead of talking to each other, for example. My inner curmudgeon remembers when my parents would scold me for spending all of my time on the computer when 56K was all the rage. I was mostly writing websites, looking at PC parts, and browsing Slashdot, mind, but spending all night after school doing it instead of hanging out with friends (that I didn't have or want; I was aggressively bullied back then) was abnormal and concerned them.
matheusmoreira 5y ago
They don't cause the severe dysfunction found in substance abuse. Opioid addiction for example is among the ugliest things in existence. Video games, gambling, social media addictions are all bad but not to the same degree.
- champagnois 5y ago
  Social media addiction can lead to severe mental health issues, eating disorders, depression, and even suicide. Video game addiction often leads to children and adults completely destroying their professional or academic lives. In many cases, a child grows up to find a balance between working just enough to afford their videogame habbit. I have read stories of an adult who was so addicted to a simple cellphone game that they were compulsively telling lies to create more game time and ultimately destroyed all of their social relationships and lost their job. All of that dysfunction stems from their brain's addiction to the rush of progress bars, levelling up, victory screens, and success chimes. Not all people are wired the same. A lot of brains are hopelessly addicted to these two categories of stimuli and I feel you dismiss them a bit too carelessly.
  - PuppyTailWags 5y ago
    I remember a time where I was playing a phone game to get some sleep (the mindless stimulation works for my brain, which has hyperactivity issues). There were time-limited events that gave bonuses for completion. One of the things I distinctly remember was that there were teams you could join, followed by team vs team competition for rewards at the end of the week. Competitive teams then had minimum floors of activity... It became like a job to keep track of your own contribution for... for... some bonuses at the end of the week? I remember becoming disappointed/unhappy that the game was asking more from me than I wanted to give (10-30 min of playing before being calm enough to sleep) and quitting. Now I only play phone games without a team/online component, like the stupid merge games or bubble games.
    - champagnois 5y ago
      I grow concerned with the increase in addiction research among technology companies. The language is disguised as user retention, engagement, social, gamification, etc. I do not have a solution to this problem and it is a problem that I myself would contribute to if I was trying to design an app that people would use. Greater addiction mechanisms trend toward wider market adoption which leads to a higher value for shareholders. The current system of incentives to a company makes this focus inevitable.
Bancakes 5y ago
Because those are legal businesses, and you can't critique the world order like that. Drink your corn syrup and stay quiet.
bengale 5y ago
Also, junk food! That is for sure my big problem.
ModernMech 5y ago
If you want an addiction that no one ever talks about, addiction to money would be a big one. That's seen more or less as a virtue in our society though.
toyg 5y ago
Because those are all pretty new phenomena, so the literature and treatment culture around them are scarce. Whereas drug and alcohol rehab has been effectively an industry for decades (or even centuries - the Salvation Army was founded in 1865...). Also, as others have said, the societal impact of substance abuse are often much more visible, directly measurable, and immediately felt.

Why such a focus of substances and no mention of the more common addictions such as video games, porn and social media?

Cthulhu_ 5y ago

Probably because they're considered less harmful to your physical health and society as a whole.

JimWestergren 5y ago
Yes, ok. But such an article with such a title should at least mention them I think. Otherwise some people keep thinking it is normal spending hours daily on social media, or checking their phone 50 times a day. We should speak up and say that it is NOT normal.
- openknot 5y ago
  It may be a writing constraint or decision by the editor to keep the article focused on alcohol and drug use, as addiction to "video games, porn and social media" may have different treatment approaches or signs of addiction (and would thus significant broaden the article's scope), though I agree with your last two sentences. For example, consider the criteria used to describe the signs of addiction: "You need an increasing amount of alcohol or drugs to feel a buzz or high. You feel an urgency to get the first drink or drug of the day. You experience a loss of interest in other activities and an increased desire to get ‘high’ or ‘buzzed’. You try to quit or cut down on the use of alcohol or drugs but can’t. You will do almost anything to get the drug or alcohol." You might feel an urge for these other addictive habits at the start of the day; experience a loss of interest in other activities; and try to cut down but can't. For the pull to experience an "increasing amount" of the activity for a high, that is plausible for porn (for some users, it's a want for more extreme content), but less so for video games and social media. It's also not immediately obvious—especially when compared to drugs and alcohol—that a user of video games, porn, or social media would "do almost anything" to satisfy the urge. The bottom line is that these behaviours, while addicting, have significant differences when compared to alcohol and drugs. Speaking from past writing experience, these would require the article to significantly broaden its scope, which may not have been possible due to editorial constraints (e.g. word count). It's also plausible that the original article may have been, "The first steps to respond to a potential alcohol or drug addiction," but the editor shortened it to a catchier "How to know if you're addicted."
- crypt1d 5y ago
  You are nitpicking. Not every article about addictions and drugs needs to read like a disclaimer. Mentioning phone and social media addiction here is certainly not going to change anyone's mind - people tend to ignore facts that don't fit their worldviews.
nunez 5y ago
`s/less harmful/socially normalized/` Getting blasted by/constantly engaging with tweets all day and endless scrolling on Instagram/TikTok/Facebook are just "things that people do" nowadays. I've seen countless couples on dates where they spend a great deal of their time using their phones instead of talking to each other, for example. My inner curmudgeon remembers when my parents would scold me for spending all of my time on the computer when 56K was all the rage. I was mostly writing websites, looking at PC parts, and browsing Slashdot, mind, but spending all night after school doing it instead of hanging out with friends (that I didn't have or want; I was aggressively bullied back then) was abnormal and concerned them.

matheusmoreira 5y ago

They don't cause the severe dysfunction found in substance abuse. Opioid addiction for example is among the ugliest things in existence. Video games, gambling, social media addictions are all bad but not to the same degree.

champagnois 5y ago
Social media addiction can lead to severe mental health issues, eating disorders, depression, and even suicide. Video game addiction often leads to children and adults completely destroying their professional or academic lives. In many cases, a child grows up to find a balance between working just enough to afford their videogame habbit. I have read stories of an adult who was so addicted to a simple cellphone game that they were compulsively telling lies to create more game time and ultimately destroyed all of their social relationships and lost their job. All of that dysfunction stems from their brain's addiction to the rush of progress bars, levelling up, victory screens, and success chimes. Not all people are wired the same. A lot of brains are hopelessly addicted to these two categories of stimuli and I feel you dismiss them a bit too carelessly.
- PuppyTailWags 5y ago
  I remember a time where I was playing a phone game to get some sleep (the mindless stimulation works for my brain, which has hyperactivity issues). There were time-limited events that gave bonuses for completion. One of the things I distinctly remember was that there were teams you could join, followed by team vs team competition for rewards at the end of the week. Competitive teams then had minimum floors of activity... It became like a job to keep track of your own contribution for... for... some bonuses at the end of the week? I remember becoming disappointed/unhappy that the game was asking more from me than I wanted to give (10-30 min of playing before being calm enough to sleep) and quitting. Now I only play phone games without a team/online component, like the stupid merge games or bubble games.
  - champagnois 5y ago
    I grow concerned with the increase in addiction research among technology companies. The language is disguised as user retention, engagement, social, gamification, etc. I do not have a solution to this problem and it is a problem that I myself would contribute to if I was trying to design an app that people would use. Greater addiction mechanisms trend toward wider market adoption which leads to a higher value for shareholders. The current system of incentives to a company makes this focus inevitable.

Bancakes 5y ago

Because those are legal businesses, and you can't critique the world order like that. Drink your corn syrup and stay quiet.

bengale 5y ago

Also, junk food! That is for sure my big problem.

ModernMech 5y ago

If you want an addiction that no one ever talks about, addiction to money would be a big one. That's seen more or less as a virtue in our society though.

toyg 5y ago

Because those are all pretty new phenomena, so the literature and treatment culture around them are scarce. Whereas drug and alcohol rehab has been effectively an industry for decades (or even centuries - the Salvation Army was founded in 1865...). Also, as others have said, the societal impact of substance abuse are often much more visible, directly measurable, and immediately felt.