Youth spending seemingly endless hours leveling up lumber skills in RuneScape

Computer addiction is an obsessive addiction to computer use. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1200x1313, 64 KB) Summary Young men playing Runescape Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (1200x1313, 64 KB) Summary Young men playing Runescape Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1. ... RuneScape is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game by British developer Jagex Limited, programmed in Java. ... For other things named OCD, see OCD (disambiguation). ... Addiction is a chronic disorder proposed to be precipitated by a combination of genetic, biological/pharmacological and social factors. ...

The term was used by M. Shotton in 1989 in her book Computer Addiction, although the concept was discussed years earlier with British E-Learning academic Nicholas Rushby, who suggested that people can be addicted to computers and suffer withdrawal symptoms in his book, An Introduction to Educational Computing in 1979. There are also examples of obsessive recreational users dating back to the first release of computer games, and many NetNews users were considered obsessive in the 1980s. 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Withdrawal refers to the characteristic signs and symptoms that appear when a drug that causes a physical dependency is regularly used for a long time and then suddenly discontinued or decreased in dosage. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... This article needs a complete rewrite for the reasons listed on the talk page. ... Usenet is a distributed Internet discussion system that evolved from a general purpose UUCP network of the same name. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ...

A variation of computer addiction is the proposed internet addiction disorder, which suggests that people can not only be addicted to an object, such as a computer, but also an environment, i.e. the Internet. Internet addiction disorder (IAD) is a theorized disorder coined by Ivan Goldberg, M.D., in 1995. ...

As gaming in the form of PC games and game consoles from various companies like Nintendo and Sega caught on and spread through the end of the millennium, the use of Internet as an increasingly viable medium for communication also rose, and traditional offline activities such as politics and dating began to take advantage of online capability. As a result, computer addiction became a more serious study, and a more vocal social concern. This computer/video game related article needs cleanup. ... The Nintendo GameCube is an example of a popular video game console. ... Nintendo Company, Limited (任天堂 or ニンテンドー Nintendō; NASDAQ: NTDOY, TYO: 7974 usually referred to as simply Nintendo, or Big N ) is a multinational corporation founded on September 23, 1889[1] in Kyoto, Japan by Fusajiro Yamauchi to produce handmade hanafuda cards. ... Sega Corporation ) is an international video game software and hardware developing company, and a former home computer and console manufacturer. ... Mass media is a term used to denote, as a class, that section of the media specifically conceived and designed to reach a very large audience (typically at least as large as the whole population of a nation state). ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Politics is the process by which individuals or relatively small groups attempt to exert influence over the actions of an organization. ... A dating system is any systemic means of improving matchmaking via rules or technology. ...

With the almost-ubiquitous use of computers in the 21st century, it has become difficult to distinguish users who are merely highly engaged in their computer use from those who could be considered truly addicted. Criteria based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria for substance dependency has been used to distinguish mere extensive use of computers from compulsive over-use, or addiction. However, the definition of "true computer addiction" is subject to debate. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual published by the American Psychiatric Association The poopDiagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM), published by the American Psychiatric Association, is the handbook used most often in diagnosing mental disorders in the United States. ...

In 2004 the Finnish Defence Forces revealed that they allow some conscripts to postpone their military service for three years due to dependence on computer games and the Internet.^{[citation needed]} 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Finnish Defence Forces (Finnish Puolustusvoimat; Swedish Försvarsmakten) is a cadre army of 16500, of which 8700 professional soldiers (officers), with a standard readiness strength of 34,700 people in uniform (27,300 army, 3,000 navy, and 4,400 air force). ...

The study of cybersex, emotional infidelity, the impact of computer use or violent video games on the brain's capacity for empathy and sympathy, the dangers associated with dating systems and obsession with computer games are all part of this field. Cybersex, computer sex or net sex is a virtual sex encounter in which two or more persons connected remotely via a computer network send one another sexually explicit messages describing a sexual experience. ... In a religious context, infidelity is an absence of faith in the beliefs or teachings of a religion, such that one who lacks such faith is an infidel. ... Violence is any act of aggression and abuse which causes or intends to cause injury, in some cases criminal, or harm to persons, and (to a lesser extent) animals or property. ... For the fictional character, see Empath (comics). ... ... A dating system is any systemic means of improving matchmaking via rules or technology. ... This article needs a complete rewrite for the reasons listed on the talk page. ...

See also

• obsessive-compulsive disorder
• video games
• hyperreality
• Shawn Woolley
• research by Sherry Turkle and David Gelernter
• books by psychologists Greenfield and Young
• Procrastination
• Cellphone addiction
• Internet addiction disorder

Namcos Pac-Man was a hit, and became a cultural phenomenon. ... In semiotics and postmodern philosophy, Hyperrealism (not to be confused with surrealism) is a term to describe a symptom of an evolved, postmodern culture. ... Shawn Woolley (1980 - 22 November 2001) was an avid player of the computer game EverQuest, an MMORPG, who committed suicide at the age of 21 years old. ... Sherry Turkle (born 1948) is a clinical psychologist and a professor of Science, Technology and Society at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. ... David Hillel Gelernter is a professor of computer science at Yale University. ... Procrastination is the deferment or avoidance of an action or task and is often linked to perfectionism. ... Cellphone addiction is an obsessive addiction to cellphones and cellphone - like gadgets. ... Internet addiction disorder (IAD) is a theorized disorder coined by Ivan Goldberg, M.D., in 1995. ...

References

• Dawn Heron. Time To Log Off: New Diagnostic Criteria For Problematic Internet Use, University of Florida, Gainesville, published in Current Psychology, April 2003 [1] (Identifies incessant posting in chat rooms as a form of emotional disorder).
• Orzack, Maressa H. Dr. (1998). "Computer Addiction: What Is It?" Psychiatric Times XV(8).
• Shotton, MA (1989), Computer Addiction? A study of computer dependency. New York: Taylor & Francis.
• Gaming Sucks Widow Website