Addiction to social networks

José María Ventura-Lucena Sánchez

December 2018

Universidad Loyola Andalucía

Psychology of Addictions and Substance Abuse
Sergio Fernández Artamendi
 1. History

​ Addiction to social networks can be considered one of the most relevant drugs in this
society due to their excessive use and purpose. However, the brief history of this kind of
websites begins in 1997, when the first social networking sites (SNSs) SixDegrees "emerged
as a result of the idea that individuals are linked via six degrees of separation, and is
conceived as "the small world problem" in which society is viewed as becoming increasingly
inter-connected" (Kuss & Griffiths, 2018). SixDegrees turned out to be a tool with which to
share messages, this was the great idea that brought success. Because even though people
were starting to massively join the internet, they lacked the resources to communicate among
friends who were online (boyd & Ellison, 2007; Kuss & Griffiths, 2011).
From 1997 to 2001, more SNS were developed focused on creating a personal or
professional profile with which to identify such personnel, with LunarStorm being the first
SNS to contain a list of friends. Following this growth, Dogster in 2003, when the SNS were
already mainstream, provided the possibility for two strangers to meet according to their
tastes or interests. However, one of the first big companies in this sector that still remains,
was MySpace, which was learning from previous SNS that failed as Friendster and changed
their policies to grow exponentially. Within their user profiles, three could be distinguished:
musicians or artists, teenagers and post-college urban social crowd. The only flaw was that
the last two groups could not interact. However, Facebook, which was created as an online
community for Harvard students, was created in 2004. Two years later this digital campus
was opened, reaching in 2008 to surpass MySpace and Friendster as the most used social
network, characterized by the ease of interaction between its users and the personalization of
personal pages. A similar situation occurred with Twitter, which experienced a similar
growth, always in competition with Facebook (boyd & Ellison, 2007).
 boyd, d., & Ellison, N. (2007). Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and
Scholarship.​Figure 1
Timeline of the launch dates of many major SNSs and dates when community sites
re-launched with SNS feature Retrieved from:
https://academic.oup.com/jcmc/article/13/1/210/4583062

From 2010, the number of websites that offered the possibility of sharing social content
managed to expose, appearing on scene SNS as Tumblr, Instagram, Youtube or WordPress.
Today, with the appearance of a multitude of applications and SNS, the market has been
segmented according to the purpose sought by users. For example: If your objective is to
communicate through images, you will use Instagram; if you look for opinions and
information on some topics you will enter Twitter. (History Cooperative, 2018).

2. Definition

According to several authors, social networking sites are virtual communities, where users
create their own public profiles, created with their preferences, in order to interact with
real-life friends and also to meet people related to their tastes (Kuss & Griffiths, 2011). These
SNS are defined according to boyd & Ellison, (2007) by:

“(1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, (2) articulate a list of
other users with whom they share a connection, and (3) view and traverse their list of
connections and those made by others within the system.”

2.1. Social networking vs social media

There are a number of features to differentiate social media from social networks. The
former may have a more focused purpose in broadcasting and transmission of information,
while the SNSs are a tool and have objectives related to the relationship between friends or
people who have common interests (Cohen, 2009; Edosomwan, Kalangot, Kouame, Watson
& Seymour, 2011; Hartshorm, 2010; Stelzner, 2009).
However, Cohen (2009) states that “the difference is not just semantics but in the features
and functions put into these websites by their creators which dictates the way they are to be
used.”

3. Prevalence and user profile

According to data extracted from Statista (2018), we can observe that the number of users
of SNS rose in 2017 to 2.46 billion and it is estimated that by 2018, the population will rise to
2.62 billion users. In 2017, 71% of the people who used the internet, were registered in some
SNSs and it is expected that this figure will continue to increase due to the large amount of
online activities and the flexibility offered by applications for smartphones, as most networks
are also available from various devices. Facebook ranks first among active monthly users,
with a total of 1.86 billion users.
Currently, the vast majority of the population tends to make use of the most predominant
users within our society are adolescents and students. If we focus on our national scope, the
Pfizer Foundation (2009) shows that 98% of young people between the ages of 11 and 20 are
Internet users. Of this figure, it stands out that 7 out of 10, dedicate a daily use to this activity
of at least 1.5 hours, but that only from 3% to 6% of this sample, makes an abusive use of the
Internet.

4. Characteristic of addiction

Regarding addiction to SNSs, there are many who indicate that it may be due to a process
similar to that which occurs when an addiction to substances occurs, that is, a combination of
biological, psychological and social factors (Kuss & Griffiths, 2011). We also observe that a
number of key factors are present, as well as in addictions to certain substances. These are
defined by Griffiths, Kuss & Demetrovics, (2014):
- Salience: The activity in the SNSs becomes the most important for the individual,
coming to dominate his way of thinking, emotions and behavior.
- Mood modification: This refers to the subjective experiences that people
report as a consequence of social networking and can be seen as a coping strategy
- Tolerance: The subject requires a greater number of interactions to achieve the results
obtained previously, an example of this may be the increase in time spent daily with
respect to the start of use of SNSs.
- Withdrawal symptoms: A series of physical symptoms are experienced such as:
shakes, moodiness, irritability.
- Conflict: The subject may suffer a series of tensions or conflicts at an interpersonal
level, with the performance of other activities or even at a personal level. It could lead
to a series of interpersonal conflicts or feelings of lack of control.
- Relapse: “This is the tendency for repeated reversions to earlier patterns of excessive
social networking to recur and for even the most extreme patterns typical of the
 height of excessive social networking to be quickly restored after periods of
control.”

In order to understand the cause of this addiction, LaRose, Lin, Eastin (2003) state, based
on several explanatory models, that the determining factor that indicates the passage from
normal to pathological use, is when the SNS becomes an important factor or exclusive
mechanism to alleviate certain negative emotional states such as stress, loneliness or
depression. They also indicate that some of these people may have some deficiencies
socializing in real life and that through the processes of self-efficacy or satisfaction they
experience, they present an increase in the frequency of use, even going so far as to ignore
relatives or friends of real life, supposing in turn, an interference for work or study. Another
factor that carries some weight in the development of addiction is habit. These users,
regardless of the frequency of use they manifest, have unconsciously acquired the habit of
resorting to this activity when they seek to reduce the states mentioned above. (Xu & Tan,
2012).
Xu & Tan (2012) confirmed the importance of message features in the development of
SNS addiction, these features are two: Message Richness and Message Synchronicity. The
first type of message is about those stimuli that combine information through the passage
through various sensory channels, such as videos or photos. The second refers to
interpersonal communication, showing that if communication between two people is fluid,
the probability of developing an addiction will be higher.
In a graphic way we can see summarized the explanatory model developed by Xu & Tan
(2012), where they comment that, to suffer this addiction, you must use SNS, a fact that could
develop a habit, and that depending on some facilitating factors, such as Message Richness
and Message Synchronicity, could give rise to the addictive disorder of which we speak.
 Xu, H., & Tan, B. (2012). Why do I keep checking Facebook: Effects of message
characteristics on the formation of Social Network Services addiction. Figure 2. Research
Model. Retrieved from ​https://core.ac.uk/display/48733969

4.1. SNS Addiction vs Internet Addiction

The SNS addiction can be considered as a subcategory of the Internet addiction, but
according to the author Xu & Tan (2012) there are a series of characteristics that are not
shared with the main one. Based on the case presented by Karaiskos et al. (2010) where it is
commented that a person had been in contact with the Internet for seven years, not
developing any type of addiction until he began to use Facebook. This makes us pay attention
to how the behaviors used in the SNSs that occur online, can report a series of consequences
that cause us pleasure and/or rewards different from other behaviors that occur on the
network. It also points out the importance of being able to interact with friends through these
platforms.

5. Negative Consequences of SNS Addiction

The SNS are designed so that, from the beginning, we experience positive sensations such
as entertainment, popularity, attention and positive feedback from those with whom we
interact, reinforcing our behaviour positively so that we develop an activity within the social
network. However, addiction to SNS can cause certain negative consequences in different
areas such as emotional, social, health and performance (Andreassen, 2015).
On an emotional level, users may have low levels of self-esteem and well-being, even in
some cases, may experience disorders such as depression or anxiety. These types of problems
are presented by a variety of factors, such as when users are not connected to the social
network, or have stopped finding in the SNS, the benefits they previously obtained. In the
social sphere, due to the excess of time they dedicate to it, it can lead these people to isolate
themselves and move away from social spheres such as family or friends, also facilitated by
the emotions mentioned above, causing a deterioration in these circles. We also find that
there can be health-related problemas. A characteristic of the addicts, they reduce the time
dedicated to sleep and the quality of it, getting to feed back to possible psychological and
physiological problems. Finally, performance levels may be decreased, as the sum of all the
above affects the work done at the academic or professional level (Andreassen, 2015).

6.Risk factors

The authors, Sánchez-Carbonell, Beranuy, Castellana, Chamorro & Oberst (2008) show
that adolescent groups constitute a new risk group, as they tend to seek new sensations and
have greater access to the Internet. However, there are very small groups that are really
considered vulnerable to this disorder. First of all, we are talking about those people who
have a higher presence of certain personality characteristics or emotional states, such as:
impulsivity, dysphoria, intolerance to pleasant stimuli and a predisposition to the exaggerated
search for strong emotions. However, a second risk group could be those who suffer from
some type of clinical personality disorder or lack an effective coping style in the face of daily
difficulties. The last group would be those users who, due to their personal dissatisfaction, try
to fill this lack with the consumption of drugs or behaviors without substances, naming the
SNS as technological prosthesis (Echeburúa & De Corral, 2010; Estévez, Bayón, De la Cruz
& Fernández-Liria, 2009; García del Castillo, Terol, Nieto, Lledó, Sánchez, Martín-Aragón,
et al., 2008; Yang, Choe, Balty & Lee, 2005).
Combining all these characteristics, we could expose that the presence of access to a
system of immediate rewards would be, for these vulnerable people, a first phase to develop
an addiction to the SNS.
 In order to recognize the presence of this disorder, we can use various techniques such as
the Addictive Tendencies Scale, with which we can measure items such as salience, loss of
control and withdrawal (Landers & Lounsbury, 2004); the Facebook Addiction Symptoms
Scale (Alabi, 2012), which is a scale adapted from the also used Internet Addiction Scale,
developed by Young (1998).

7.Alarm signals

There are no defined diagnostic criteria to classify a behavior as addicted to NHS, although
several authors have pointed out several aspects that could indicate the presence (Echeburúa
& De Corral, 2010; Davis, 2001; Young, 1998):
a. Depriving oneself of sleep (<5 hours) in order to be connected to the network, to
which abnormally high connection times are dedicated.
b. Neglecting other important activities, such as contact with the family, social relations,
study or health care.
c. Receive complaints about the use of the network from someone close to you, such as
parents or siblings.
d. Thinking about the network constantly, even when you are not connected to it and
feeling excessively irritated when the connection fails or is too slow.
e. Trying to limit connection time, but not achieving it, and losing track of time.
f. Lying about the real time you are online or playing a video game.
g. Isolate socially, be irritable and lower performance in studies.
h. Feeling an anomalous euphoria and activation when in front of the computer.

8.Prevention strategies

​ The author Ramón-Cortés (2010) in his publication, focusing on the group of adolescents,
states that both parents and educators must establish guidelines and agreements to prevent
future consequences:
a. Limit the use of devices and agree on the hours of use of the computer.
b. Encourage relationships with other people.
c. Encourage hobbies such as reading, cinema and other cultural activities.
 d. Stimulate sport and team activities.
e. Develop group activities, such as those linked to volunteering.
f. Stimulate communication and dialogue in one's own family.

9.Treatment

Within the addiction to the SNS, it is impossible to consider that the person shows a total
abstinence from social networks, due to the implication that has in our day to day, therefore
the relearning of the control of the conduct must be the main objective to which one must
aspire. The method to follow should first be the complete withdrawal of social networks
during the first weeks of treatment. Subsequently, a gradual approach will be made,
controlling the subject's exposure to risk stimuli. In this way, it is intended that the person can
dedicate less and limited time to the NHS, also reducing the presence of aversive thoughts
and harmful behavior such as the reduction of sleep hours. It is only at this stage that
subjective restlessness begins to decrease and the person begins to gain confidence in his or
her capacity for self-control in the face of various everyday situations. (Echeburúa & De
Corral, 2010).
Finally, as a last phase, the weight of the intervention must fall on the capacity to prevent
relapses, identifying risk situations, learning appropriate responses for coping and modifying
cognitive distortions on the subject's ability to control, as well as introducing changes to
know how to plan time and acquire healthy lifestyle habits (Echeburúa & De Corral, 2010).

10.Conclusion

By way of conclusion, we can point to the growing importance of this type of possible
new disorders. Confronted with the ever-increasing use of smartphones and SNS, the
prevalence of the same may expose itself and become a greater evil in the future, where
characteristics of this disorder such as loneliness as isolation, loneliness and anxiety can be
worsened by the fact that the society in which we live has already internalized these values.
We consider it important that correctly defined criteria are established in order to be able to
assess them in the most appropriate way possible.
 In this way and making society see the prevalence that this disorder can suppose, to create
a global awareness in order to prevent these vulnerable groups and young people, develop in
real life and use these SNS as a simple hobby.
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