Addicted to Gadgets
Rapid Advances Spawn Behavioral Studies
The technology of electronic devices and the desire to stay connected can be addictive behavior according to a Denver counseling specialist, while a practicing psychologist says there’s no doubt many people are addicted to gadgets.
“The key to determining addiction is if use of the device interferes with, or causes a problem with otherwise ordinary activity,” says Scott DiMuro, a veteran addictions specialist at Metropolitan State University of Denver. “For example, if satisfying the pleasure impulse by using the device instead of eating properly or taking care of children, the user likely has an addiction.”
DiMuro says the ubiquity of electronic gadgets and the even more rapid advances in technology has spawned behavioral studies at all levels. The results of extensive research, he says, won’t be known for a while, so counselors have to work with what knowledge and experience they already possess.
Meanwhile, the psychologist says electronic game playing is already classified as an addiction in DSM-V, the handbook of psychiatric disorders and treatment. The psychologist asked not to be identified in this story to protect the privacy of her patients.
“We already see patients who are using the devices at the same time they would normally be engaged in positive human interaction. Those who sleep with their devices, or are compelled to have the gadget next to them during a meal are addicted,” she noted.
Recently, at a downtown cellular service retail store, a man carrying two devices and buying a third, turned to his wife and said, “we need to call somebody and tell them what we’re doing.”
DiMuro is a licensed addiction counselor who has spent nearly five decades learning and practicing his specialty. He has served on numerous national boards and committees.
“Over the years, there is a new awareness that addiction goes beyond chemical substances. Gambling is one of the first behaviors to be recognized as an addiction not related directly to substances, and of course, food is a common addiction. Now, we know there are many other human activities which are addictive, but need further study.”
According to DiMuro, most people use their devices normally. While their activity may be obsessive, it does not reach the level of addiction.
“The primary factor in determining addiction is if the activity causes problems for the user or others.” He says even hobbies can take on the properties of addiction if pursuit of the hobby takes away time from other people.
“Accessibility leads to a stronger risk (of addiction),” DiMuro said. “When an activity is known to be addictive, western society generally wants to limit accessibility. Virtually any behavior can be addictive. Some accessibility is driven be politics, economics, and other vested interests.”
Addictive behavior is driven by the neurological desire to stimulate reward, according to DiMuro. Chemical ingestion — including alcoholic beverages and cigarettes — is usually more common because it satisfies the reward impulse more rapidly. “Some people are an increased risk because they can become dependent and not realize it,” he said.
In the case of electronic devices, the reward impulse is triggered by the desire to stay connected or stay informed, says DiMuro. Technology drives this desire by continuing to offer the next big thing, or, in the case of developing areas, something which has never before been available.
For example, complex wireless electronic phone services developed much faster and better in Europe and Asia because previous service was so bad or non-existent.
According to DiMuro, the desire-obsession-reward cycle often leads to a perceived need for more rewarding stimulation for an individual to stay in equilibrium. “Think about being extremely hungry. Even though a person may not need to eat, the person desires more food to stay in balance.
While all this connectivity and information availability may not seem important to others, the use of the technology is essentially in the eye of the beholder. “For whom it matters is a value judgment,” he noted.
There are continuing arguments in the academic community about genetic pre-disposition of addictive behavior, says DiMuro. Some assert that addiction is a learned process, while others say certain individuals have physical-psychological characteristics leading to addiction.
“Either way,” DiMuro said, “if nothing is done to override destructive behavior, the addiction will continue until the situation is totally out of control.”
The addictions counselor stresses, however, that auto-compulsive behavior can be cognitively overcome, such as stopping addiction to substances. The evidence and experience isn’t quite as clear when the reward stimulation is external, he says.
Dave Felice is a member of National Writers Union Local 1981, and recipient of an award this year from the Society of Professional Journalists for news column writing. He is Chair of Greater Park Hill Community Inc. He can be reached at chair@greaterparkhill.org.
Operators Are Not Standing By
Making The Case For POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service)
By Dave Felice
It has been a long time since Park Hill residents made a “collect” phone call or waited until after 7 on Sunday evening to dial a long distance call.
The advent of the cellular – also known as wireless or mobile – phone has not only changed how people use the telephone, but how they behave culturally toward the phone.
For example, using a cell phone no longer dictates where a person is located or the origin of a call. The original North American Numbering Plan, developed by Bell Laboratories, indicates whether a call came from New Jersey (Area Code 201) or from Los Angeles (Area Code 213).
Now, a three-digit Area Code is just part of a 10-digit phone number, allowing a mobile call to be connected anywhere in the world.
The Area Code is on its way into history, along with exchange names such as the famous Butterfield-8 or BEechwood 45789. The original Park Hill exchange (Central Office switching center) names included DUdley, EAst, FRanklin, DExter, and CHerry.
Caller ID, once a premium feature, is now taken for granted. All cell phones display the originating number and, in most cases, the number being called. Many cell phone users now do not bother to listen to a voice message, but simply call the number on the screen to return the call.
Use of text messaging has replaced voice contact in many instances. Some people use text almost exclusively. One Park Hill woman recently complained to me that her son, in another city, will only communicate by text and never talks to her.
The traditional significance of how phone numbers are written has also undergone a change. The hyphen was originally used to signify a pause in the number sequence. Bell Labs scientists determined that up to four numbers were easiest to remember. So the seven-digit sequence consisted of a three-four pattern, with a pause after the first three characters. Area Codes were originally separated by parentheses to show that the numbers were optional.
Now, many people apparently think it is stylish to write 10-digit phone numbers with periods, or full stops, between each group.
Technology has also led to a convergence of computer and telephone technology known as the smart phone, which do so much more than just make and receive phone calls. Providers are hawking a dazzling array of apps (little applications) and shared rollover data with cloud storage.
Not unexpectedly, fourth generation (4G) cellular service leads to a decline in traditional wired, or “landline” phone, also known as POTS (Plain Old Telephone Service). Central Office wiring frames, which once contained hundreds of thousands of connections, now carry only several hundred pairs of wires.
In spite of technology, there are still two major advantages of a traditional wired telephone. Each call goes through several different routing mechanisms, but still runs on one pair of wires from one end to the other. All of these wires and routing mechanisms (switches) are protected by battery backup power supplies.
These protections mean the landline phone will work when all other electrical services are interrupted. Reliance on non-functional cellular service actually hampered recovery from major storms such as Hurricane Sandy in the northeast a few years ago.
In addition, wired telephone services cannot be monitored as easily as cellular. Because cellular is basically two-way radio, anyone with a receiver can listen to the call. Land-based wired telephones are covered by different federal laws, which generally require a court ordered warrant before calls can be monitored.
General Motors pioneered automobile-based mobile telephony with the OnStar customer assistance service in the 1980s. In 1988, the entirely new Buick Reatta Coupe had an electronic controller in the center of the dashboard. Customers actually rejected the control screen, and Reatta shifted to a traditional dashboard in 1989. Some Reatta models in 1988 also had a mobile phone built into the console.
The FCC ruling that customers owned their own telephone numbers led to a market in numbers. Some custom, or vanity, phone numbers are now being sold for over $100,000.
For more information on phone history, contact the Telecommunications History Group at 303-296-1221 or www.telcomhistory.org.