Caught in the Net: How to Recognize the Signs of Internet Addiction—and a Winning Strategy for Recovery (Hardcover)

by Kimberly S. Young (Author) "Let me take you on a tour of the "other side" of the Internet..." (more)
Key Phrases: terminal love, faceless community, recovery strategy, New York, Mary Lou, Terminal Time Warp (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
"I don't even help [my children] with their homework in the evening because I'm in the chat rooms, and I don't help put them to bed because I don't realize how late it is. I also don't help them get ready for school in the morning like I used to do because I'm checking my e-mail. And I just can't stop myself."—Raymond, an Internet addict.

Internet addiction is real. Like alcoholism, drug addiction, or compulsive gambling, it has devastating effects on the lives of addicts and their families: divorce, job loss, falling productivity at work, failure in school, and, in extreme cases, criminal behavior. The problem has already reached epidemic proportions in the United States, and the number of "netaholics" continues to grow rapidly as more households and businesses go on-line. Yet, until now, no one from the mental health community has come forward with a specific description of Internet addiction and its effects or a strategy for treatment and recovery.

In Caught in the Net, Kimberly Young shares the results of her three-year study of Internet abuse. Often using the words of the Internet addicts themselves, she presents the stories of dozens of lives that were shattered by an overwhelming compulsion to surf the Net, play MUD games, or chat with distant and invisible neighbors in the timeless limbo of cyberspace.

Why is the Internet so seductive? What are the warning signs of Internet addiction? Is recovery possible? Dr. Young answers these questions and many more. She provides a questionnaire to help Net users determine whether they are addicts, and offers concrete steps to help problem users regulate Internet usage and devise a more balanced place for it in their daily lives.

For Internet addicts as well as their parents, spouses, friends, and employers, Caught in the Net offers guidance on where and how to seek help from counselors, therapists, and other professionals who take this affliction seriously. For mental health professionals, this book provides insights into the nature and causes of Internet addiction and encourages counselors and therapists to expand their addiction recovery programs to address the specific problems of Internet addicts.

"Think that computer addiction is a joke? Think again. This groundbreaking book is the first to explore on-line addiction in a serious way and to consider the effects on individuals and their families. Caught in the Net is an important book for anyone who spends mornings and evenings connected to the Net."—Clifford Stoll, author of The Cuckoo's Egg and Silicon Snake Oil.

"An excellent account of the dangers of the burgeoning Internet industry. Dr. Young carefully outlines the traps into which people can fall and offers pragmatic self-help suggestions. Caught in the Net is valuable for both consumers and the professionals who deal with them."—Maressa Hecht Orzack, PhD, Founder and Coordinator, Computer Addiction Services, McLean Hospital Lecturer, Harvard University Medical School

"I don't mean to spend all my time this way, but I can't stop. It's the only place my opinion matters and I feel important."—bob&atsign;age38.automechanic.internet.addict

"I feel guilty about it, but when I tried to break free, I simply didn't have the strength....I'm a long-time smoker, but I've found the craving to go on the Internet first thing every morning is stronger than my urge to light a cigarette."—marylou&atsign;age40.motheroffour.internet.addict

"When you're talking about the Internet, you're talking about power. It's the most powerful information tool I have ever known. When I explore the on-line world, I feel like that robot in the movie Short Circuit. I need more input! More input!"—dave&atsign;age28.militarytelecommunicationsexpert.internet.addict

"I feel the rush every time my mind gets connected to this intensely powerful information whirlpool. When I enter cyberspace, I become one with my mind. It's like Mr. Spock doing the Vulcan mind meld."—josh&atsign;age29.computerprogrammer.internet.addict

itt.

From the Publisher
The first book to identify the problem of Internet addiction, and to offer help to "online-aholics." Caught in the Net reveals that the behavior of excessive on-line users fits the behavior associated with clinical definitions of established addictions such as alcoholism and excessive gambling. The book explores the problem of Internet addiction in lively detail and provides answers to questions such as: Why is the Internet so seductive? Who gets addicted to it? What are the signs of addictive behavior? and What can you do to help yourself or your loved ones break the addiction?

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Wiley (February 27, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 2744119598
• ISBN-13: 978-2744119590
• ASIN: 0471191590
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #406,141 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful self-help guide for Internet addicts!!, July 10, 1999

By A Customer

I spent most of my time chatting away for hours and I forgot about my family and friends all the while. Kimberly Young's book helped me to figure out what was missing in my life and why the Internet held such great appeal. The book was able to balance the positive aspects of online use, especially chat room friendships, and help me to uncover other issues in my life that contributed to my addictive behavior. The book really dealt with the issue in a straight forward manner and I felt like I wasn't alone in my struggle. The case studies supported the theory presented and the book offers great practical advice.

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It saved my marriage from a cyberaffair!, November 4, 1998

By A Customer

About a year ago my wife began chatting and suddenly developed a cyberaffair with a man she met over the Internet. Our once happy marriage quickly turned into chaos as she now wanted a divorce. Not only was this difficult for me to cope with, but our children ages 9-14years didn't understand the personality changes that took place over their mother. Kimberly Young's wonderful book explained the lure of cyberaffairs and online relationships. It is the first book to really get at the heart of what makes cyberaffairs so seductive. Not only does she speak to the "addicts," but her book offers specific ways that spouses can cope with cyberaffairs and gives practical advice on how couples rebuild the trust in their marriages. After reading the book, my wife and I are now in marital therapy and on our way to repairing our relationship. All I can say is thank you to Kimberly Young for writing this book as it helped save our family from falling apart.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars an invaluable resource for the addicted and their loved ones, July 8, 1998

By A Customer

Caught in the Net is an invaluable resource for either those who find themselves addicted to internet use or for those who find their lives impacted by a loved ones' excessive internet use. As a recovering chat addict myself, I can vouch for the kind of misery this dependence causes. I, like many other married people I met online, found myself "falling in love" with charming members of the opposite sex and thus jeopardizing my long and happy marriage. As one fellow female chatter expressed it: "I thought I was happily married until I started chatting!" I, like another reviewer of the book, question the likelihood that anyone who has experienced an addiction to chat, is going to recover without abstinence. I found that although I thought I had broken the cycle, once I returned, I was experiencing the same "buzz" and "high" that led me into difficulty there in the first place. The only solution for me was to swear off forever. Dr. Young's book was a refreshing change from the "nudge-nudge, wink-wink" approach to the phenomenon I found in so many other books on the subject which failed to recognize how this problem is devastating real life relationships and how real people in one's life are neglected in favor of attending to the needs of "virtual strangers."