Digital addiction - limits in a world without boundaries
When the smartphone becomes an addiction: I bought my first cell phone when I was 18. A Nokia with a keypad. Back then, it was almost frowned upon to own one. People who communicated wirelessly with another person via an almost phone booth-like device were labeled "busybodies". Almost 20 years later, the image has changed enormously. People who don't have a smartphone are viewed with suspicion. Life without the Internet and a cell phone is unthinkable for many.
In the last two decades, the triumphant advance of the internet and mobile telephony has brought about a profound change in society that affects all areas of life: how we communicate with each other, how we access the world. The number of stimuli that bombard us every day via digital media in private and public spaces seems almost endless.
Unlimited choice meets the finite nature of time
"How old has the oldest person on this planet become so far?" is one of the favorite questions I ask participants in my seminars on the topic of "Digital Balance".
It is the Frenchwoman Jeanne Calment, who is currently the oldest person with a lifespan of 122 years and 164 days.
I find it absolutely fascinating to think that in 125 years' time there will probably be no human being alive on this planet. Even the baby who is being born at this very moment. And neither will you, who are reading this article.
What does that tell us? That our lifetime and our own resources are limited. At the same time, we live in a world of infinite options in which limits and finiteness can be effortlessly ignored.
Two trends have developed from the rapid change in our world through digital media. On the one hand, we have a better fit thanks to the unlimited choice - even for something as banal as a pair of trousers. Where just a few decades ago there were three models, today there is a suitable model for every leg length and every type in 15 different colors. We have faster and better access to information, more opportunities to get in touch with other people across the globe and numerous ways to express ourselves.
Digital media - positive effects and downsides
Digital media have also brought us many positive things in terms of direct health. For one thing, more knowledge: Whereas three decades ago you had to go to a library for information about the human body, today you can find it on the internet in just a few seconds. Low-threshold online services also offer the opportunity for people to seek support more quickly for issues that are shameful or would require more organizational effort, such as psychosocial counselling.
On the other hand, the sheer choice leads to excessive demands and new clinical pictures. "Fear of missing out" is what we sociologists call the fear of missing something in the maelstrom of possibilities: be it news, the latest photos of acquaintances on social media or the moment to post your own message on business platforms such as Xing or LinkedIn. This leads to constant internal pressure and a dissolution of boundaries in the natural world that is still within our grasp.
The proliferation of smartphones and digital devices has yet another downside for our own well-being. Various forms of addiction are directly linked to digital entertainment media, such as porn and gaming addiction - content can be accessed at any time via a smartphone. The effect of the unlimited nature of the internet on other addictions must also be taken into account, such as digital shopping addiction, which is fueled by the fact that goods are available online 24/7 and relatively anonymously.
What makes digital devices so attractive to our brains?
Looking inward, enduring boredom - being aware of thoughts, feelings and our bodies in order to integrate them into the context of our lives - is a basic premise for mental health. With digital media and the constant availability of technical devices, we can escape moments of boredom much more easily.
There is also the happiness hormone dopamine. When we reach for our cell phone, check our emails or open Netflix, our brain releases dopamine. This triggers the reward system in our body in a similar way to cigarettes or alcohol. It creates a pull effect.
Studies have shown that social media activity, playing certain online games or receiving messages on your phone send a strong motivational signal to our reward system[1]. This can trigger an urge for more and more. New habits are formed that gradually find their way into everyday life. This resembles a hunt for feelings of happiness, which can take on addictive traits or even end in an addiction.
In addiction, people need something specific to stabilize themselves, which they obtain from outside, such as a certain game, social media, etc. Without this, they experience internal destabilization, which leads to physical withdrawal symptoms such as headaches or tremors. Without this, they experience internal destabilization, which leads to physical withdrawal symptoms such as headaches or tremors. In addition, abstinence causes severe physical stress due to a measurable increase in the release of the stress hormone cortisol.
Emotionally and mentally, withdrawal symptoms appear due to the constant circling around the digital medium. In extreme cases, the addicted person neglects vital activities (eating, sleeping) in order to satisfy their craving for digital consumption.
Compensation for a deficiency
The addiction itself is not the problem. It is an attempt to solve a problem, for example to prevent strong emotions, to distract oneself from strokes of fate or to escape the confrontation with oneself and existential questions. The real question is what the cause of the problem is; coaching is about finding out what the client's compensation strategies are in order to distance themselves from painful issues or unfulfilled longings.
What is known is that the majority of people use digital media - and in some cases excessively. Smartphone use alone is between 3.8 and 8.8 hours per day, depending on the age and geographical location of the sample. This does not include laptops or tablets.
Two points that are important for a beneficial approach to digital media:
- You need a balance: just as it's okay to have a glass of wine sometimes, it's okay to be on your cell phone sometimes. The dose makes the poison.
- Humans need breaks: our body system is based on tension and relaxation. Humans may have invented machines, but they are not machines. Unlike a light bulb, which can burn until the end of its life, we need phases of rest in order to shine our personal light in the world: also and especially from digital media!
Enable reflection processes on the use of digital media
Particularly in coaching and counseling processes that focus on well-being and constructive stress management, it can be helpful for clients to become aware of their use of digital media as part of their own reflection process:
- From taking stock by checking screen time to reflecting on what the client uses which digital application for and when - to what extent are these of a practical nature (maps, checking timetables, searching for information...) or compensatory, such as scrolling through social media to fulfill the need for social contact?
- We then focus on whether or what the client would like to change in their qualitative and quantitative selection of digital media and what they would gain by changing their usage behavior. Wonder questions such as: "What would be different if you had no access to digital media for a month?" help the client to enter new emotional and mental spaces.
- Supplementary, specific target agreements help the client to create new, beneficial habits as well as time and space to encounter themselves more within their own boundaries.
Author:
Katja Schönitz | As a sociologist M.A. and freelance consultant, Katja has been successfully anchoring topics of leadership and personnel development as well as health management in organizations for many years. In addition to her consulting work, she supports managers and employees in workshops and coaching sessions on all aspects of maintaining and strengthening health in the workplace. The focus is on topics such as:
Healthy leadership, successful (digital) communication, stress management and resilience. Additional focal points such as the balanced use of digital media and constructive relationship management in business round off her portfolio.
References: Koch, Christoph: Digital balance - living easier with smart cell phone use. Munich, 2021.Roberts J, Yaya L, Manolis C. The invisible addiction: Cell phone activity and addiction in male and female college students. Journal of Behavioral Addiction. Aug 26, 2014;3(4):254-65. pmid:25595966.Schulz van Endert T, Mohr PNC (2020) Preferences and impulsivity: investigating the association between actual smartphone use and delay discounting. PLoS ONE 15(11):e0241383.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0241383.https://www.presseportal.de/pm/112066/3638753
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