“ADDICTION” AND INTERNET ADDICTION DISORDER
Bratter and Forest (1985; in Freeman, 1992) define addiction as “a behavior pattern of compulsive drug use characterized by overwhelming involvement…with the use of a drug and the securing of the supply, as well as the tendency to relapse after completion of withdrawal.” Like all other addictions, Internet addiction is a psychophysiological disorder involving tolerance (the same amount of usage elicits less response; increased amounts become necessary to evoke the same amount of pleasure), withdrawal symptoms (especially, tremors, anxiety, and moodiness), affective disturbances (depression, irritability), and interruption of social relationships (a decline or loss, either in quality or quantity).

Due to the nature of Internet Addiction Disorder (failed impulse control without involving an intoxicant), of all other addictions, IAD is said to be closest to pathological gambling. However, the effects that the addiction can have on every aspect of the person’s life are just as devastating as those of alcoholism. Kimberly S. Young, Psy.D., conducted a study involving nearly 500 heavy Internet users. Their behavior was compared to the clinical criteria used to classify pathological gambling as defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV, published by the American Psychiatric Association. Using this criteria, eighty percent of the participants in the Young’s study were classified as dependent Internet users.

They “exhibited significant addictive behavior patterns.” She concludes that, “the use of the internet can definitely disrupt one’s academic, social, financial, and occupational life the same way other well-documented addictions like pathological gambling, eating disorders, and alcoholism can” (Young, 1996). There have been many attempts by medical doctors and psychologists to explain addiction disorders. These theories include psychodynamic and personality explanations, sociocultural explanations, behavioral explanations, and biomedical explanations. Not all explain any addiction perfectly, and some are better than others at explaining Internet addiction.

Psychodynamics and Personality
Psychodynamic and personality views account for addiction through early childhood traumas, correlations with other certain personality traits or other disorders, and inherited psychological dispositions (Sue, 1994). A dispositional model or diathesis-stress model of addiction might help in understanding IAD. Certain people, due to a variety of factors, may be predisposed (diathesis) to developing an addiction to something, be it alcohol, heroin, gambling, sex, shopping, or on-line computer services.

They could go through their entire lives never developing any kind of addiction. On the other hand, if the right stressor, or combination of stressors, affects the person at a critical time, the person may be more inclined to develop an addiction. If the person begins drinking alcohol even occasionally, but continues to increase consumption, he may develop a dependency on alcohol. The same premise holds for Internet addiction. If it is the right combination of time, person, and event, then addiction may take place. The idea is that it is not the activity or subject that is important. It is the person that is most crucial to the equation.