Screen Addiction: a New Addictive Disorder?

Lately there has been a lot of talk about a phenomenon that has become known as “screen addiction.” This concept refers to the psychological problems that can arise from excessive use of relatively recent technological devices, such as a tablet, mobile phone or computer. It is important to highlight that, for the behavior to be called “screen addiction”, the person must invest a large part of their daily life in being in front of a screen.

But, despite the growing use of technological devices, we find that, currently, there is no consensus as to whether these psychological problems are part of the same category of diseases as drug addiction or, On the contrary, it presents enough of its own characteristics to be a separate psychopathology. So is there a real addiction to screens?

Addictions and their characteristics

First, it is important to define what an addiction is. An addiction is a pathology that involves a dependence on the consumption of a substance or a specific behavior. The most important characteristic of this pathology is its enormous capacity to “hook” the person who suffers from it and immerse them in a vicious circle that is very difficult to break.

This vicious circle will move between discomfort and the consequent search for relief through consumption or addictive behavior which, in turn, will cause more unrest in the future. All of this will mean that, gradually, the person trapped in this circle will develop an obsession with the source of reinforcement. Little by little, her entire life is oriented towards that source of addiction, which apparently becomes her only source of motivation.

For an addiction to be such, they must manifest themselves the following features:

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Is “screen addiction” an addiction?

Screen addiction could be included in the so-called behavioral addictions, since addiction is experienced towards a behavior (in this case, continued exposure to technological devices), not to the effect that a substance has when consumed and interacting with our nervous cells. And although it may seem strange, this type of addiction is not yet officially included in psychiatry manuals. For what reason?

It is true that The inclusion of psychopathologies in diagnostic manuals is not a quick process. The use of the Internet has not become popular until recent decades, so it is a fairly recent phenomenon. Furthermore, subtypes of addictions are not usually included in these manuals.

Thus, for example, the appearance of a new drug will not imply its inclusion, since it is already understood that it is included within drug addiction.

Of course, The fact that an addiction is not included does not mean that the harm of the person who suffers from it is underestimated, and obviously it will be considered an addiction with the same characteristics as the others. However, the non-inclusion of this behavior in the manuals may be due to other reasons. Mainly, the fact that it has not been proven that “screen addiction” causes reactions comparable to other addictions.

Specifically, there is no clear evidence that people who invest a large part of their daily lives in electronic devices develop “tolerance”, one of the essential characteristics of addiction, which we have already explained in the previous section. In other words, there is no reliable evidence that people who regularly use technological devices need more and more exposure time to find the characteristic “relief”.

Furthermore, those who suggest that there may be a pathology related to the abuse of electronic devices are not referring to any device with a screen, but to those that are connected to the Internet or a broadcast network. This makes the concept of “screen addiction” unclear. In any case, what generates dependence is the use of certain digital platforms, such as social networks like Instagram or TikTok, or chat applications such as Telegram or WhatsApp.

Thus, the term “screen addiction” is an approximate way of implying what a psychological problem is that does exist and that is present in the lives of many young people and that, regardless of whether from a point of view technical is part of addictive disorders, it is a reason to seek professional help in therapy. What must be kept in mind is that all addictions are based on dependency, but not all psychological disorders based on dependency are, technically, addictions. For this reason, health professionals specialized in addictive disorders and dependency problems We adapt our form of intervention taking into account the specific problems faced by each patient, without taking anything for granted.

The treatment

If screen addiction is currently not officially considered a “sister” psychopathology of, for example, alcoholism, and, therefore, these behaviors are not included within addictive disorders, how are patients who come to treatment treated? therapy to correct this behavior? In general, the strategies used to deal with addictive disorders are combined, on the one hand, with psychological intervention aimed at solving problems related to action (such as, for example, anxiety), something that also occurs in intervention in impulse control disorders such as trichotillomania and onychophagia.

Furthermore, health professionals specialized in addictions and other psychopathologies adapt our form of intervention to other typical characteristics of this problem; among them, the fact that it occurs mainly in adolescents and young adults, so coordination and communication with families is especially important.

In any case, the fact that the popularly called screen addiction is not currently considered by professional circles as an “addiction” does not mean that its importance should be underestimated. These types of behaviors can have a negative impact on a person’s life and They usually hide psychological disorders which, if not treated, can worsen, which is why it is very important to go to therapy at the first symptoms of “hook-up.” It is especially important if they begin to occur during childhood, since it is a behavior that can hinder the maturation process of the boy or girl.

Are you looking for professional help for screen addiction?

If you want professional support to overcome an addiction or a psychological disorder based on dependency, contact us. In Recal Clinic We will be happy to assist your case.