With 400 million users on Facebook, even its critics wouldn't describe the social network as a fad. But some
psychologists say the site's most frequent users might have FAD: Facebook Addiction Disorder.
In a comprehensive post on the Huffington Post, therapist Lisa Haisha, MS, explores how loneliness, compulsive behavior and the tendency to rationalize online obsession as "work-related" may fuel a person's Facebook addiction. She writes:
One of the problems with social media sites like Facebook is that people feel they have a reason to be addicted because they claim they're doing business. Some are self-employed professionals looking for clients, some are job seekers trying to network for a new job, and some are corporate employees trying to extend their company's message and brand online. All that is fine, but let's look at reality: For most people, their time on Facebook is escapism disguised as working.
We're seeing an incredible retreat into virtual worlds these days. People are hiding behind their monitors more than ever before, and their time spent online continues to climb. What this means is less human interaction, less touch, less accountability, and less human connection. That can be a sure sign of loneliness. In fact, the use of social media sites, when gone unchecked, can actually exacerbate feelings of loneliness, because they remind the user of how little interaction they truly have with others.
Previously: The addictive properties of Web analytics
Photo by bengsoon
