ICT addiction: how do psychologists intervene?

A type of dependence that can destroy social relationships and ways of life.

ICT addiction is a relatively new phenomenon, but one that is gaining phenomenon, but one that is becoming increasingly important. The reasons are obvious: The Internet and the new electronic devices connected to the network of networks have burst into our society, with both positive and negative consequences.

The truth is that for many people, the ability to connect at any time and always find new content through their screen has become, more than a habit, a necessity that they cannot do without.

Given that for many people this dependence has become a problem that significantly affects their quality of life, in this article we will see how psychologists intervene in cases of ICT addiction.as well as several characteristics of this phenomenon.

What is ICT addiction?

First of all, it should be noted that what is popularly known as ICT addiction is not an addiction according to diagnostic manuals, in which in most cases this word is used only for cases of substance dependence with few exceptions.

Thus, in this case we are talking about a type of behavior that has degenerated into a psychological dependence (not chemical, since no specific substance is sought).

Psychological dependence, in turn, can be defined as a set of behaviors whose function is to satisfy an intense desire or craving from which it is difficult to disengage the attentional focus; that is, if we do not do what the need requires, the urgency to direct all our attention towards it appears, as well as irritability, anxiety and in some cases even agitation at the physiological level.

To give an example, a person with ICT addiction addiction misses connecting to his or her social networks via the cell phone If they have not done so for more than five minutes, and if they are unable to do so, they think about how to do it as soon as possible, even though they are doing activities that have nothing to do with it, until the discomfort is so intense that they feel they must connect practically no matter what, without thinking about the consequences.

How do psychologists intervene?

Psychological intervention in these cases has two different moments: prevention, to prevent these causes of discomfort from developing in those who are most vulnerable to it, and psychological evaluation and subsequent therapy.

Prevention

Prevention actions are mostly carried out in educational centers and independent talks to parents, and have the following objectives that young people and their parents learn to distinguish between bad habits, abuse and addiction..

In general, an attempt is made to provide children and adolescents with practical examples describing different ways of using the most popular electronic devices in this age group: tablets, smartphones, etc.

Intervention programs aimed at other vulnerable groups can also be carried out in adults, in which case it is more important to concentrate efforts on reaching these people directly and not so much their family environment.

Therapy and rehabilitation

The following guidelines are general guidelines for treating cases of ICT dependence, but it should be clear that the therapeutic approach must be adapted to each individual case.. This is usually done by an interdisciplinary team, which will assess the severity of the case and the specific needs of the subject. Beyond that, the usual strategies are the following.

1. Patient and family counseling

Upon detection of the problem, the patient and his or her family environment are informed of what is happening. It is important that family members are well informed, since addictions require continuous monitoring, and these people should have guidelines for action both in times of crisis and in dealing with the patient, so as not to encourage relapses.

Indication of the type of intervention

On the other hand, depending on whether the case is serious or not and whether this interferes with the fundamental needs of the person, a period of therapeutic admission will be indicated (in the most extreme cases).

In the event that admission is unnecessary, a period of outpatient or outpatient or occasional treatment in a psychologist's office once or twice a week..

3. Training in strategies to avoid relapse

During the moments of therapeutic care, the main objective is for the person to adapt to a way of life in which ICTs do not have such a strong presence, and to learn how to avoid relapse. The use of the stimuli should be phased out as far as possible, except for what is strictly necessary, and in order to make this transition, the child will be taught strategies to avoid such stimuli.In order to make this transition, the child will be taught strategies to avoid stimuli of this type.

For example, how to avoid being near cell phones, what to do in moments of anxiety when faced with the inability to use ICTs, training in relaxation exercises, etc.

In addition, strategies are also applied to keep the patient's motivation highIn addition, strategies are also applied to keep the patient's motivation high, and at the same time, the patient himself finds sources of motivation in what he considers relevant.

4. Attention to other possible psychological problems

It should also be taken into account if the person also has a history of other psychological problems or even parallel addictions (the latter is very common), in order to be able to adapt the type of intervention to the patient's needs. to be able to adapt the type of intervention.

5. Rehabilitation

After having gone through a stage in which the need to be constantly connected to ICTs has decreased to levels without clinical discomfort, we move on to the rehabilitation stage, in which the objective is to relearn new ways of living without relapsing into addiction. the goal is to relearn new ways of living without relapsing back into addiction..

Here, training focuses on the adoption of new relational dynamics, the avoidance of places associated with constant ICT use in the past, and the development of new hobbies.

How to train in this area?

There are several options available to health professionals interested in training in this and other forms of addiction and dependence. In them, the important thing is to have the most up-to-date information and academic content in order not to lose sight of the reality of addiction and dependence. in order not to lose sight of the reality of these psychosocial phenomena, in constant transformation that runs parallel to changes in lifestyles.

An example of a recommended training program is the Master's Degree in Prevention of Addictive Behavior at the International University of Valencia. In this 60 ECTS-credit online master's degree program, for which enrollment is now open, students are taught to implement these prevention measures in various relevant contexts, teaches how to implement these prevention measures in a variety of relevant contextsfrom educational centers to work environments.

On the other hand, it offers the possibility of internships in professional environments in both public and private centers. In addition, it works solely on the basis of scientific evidence. For more information about it, you can click on this link.

Bibliographic references:

• Gómez Mena, C. (2015). "La adicción a Internet puede destruir relaciones sociales, alerta especialista". La Jornada. Society and Justice: Grupo Demos, Desarrollo de Medios, S.A. de C.V. p. 30.
• Shaffer, H.J. and Hall, M.N.. (1996) Estimating the prevalence of adolescent gambling disorders: A quantitative synthesis and guide to ward standard gambling nomenclature. Journal of Gambling Studies, 12, 193-214.