What is Internet psychology?

Introduction

The Internet is an electronic computer-based network facilitating communication among vast numbers of individuals, groups, businesses, and governments. Internet psychology is a new area in psychology that touches on earlier work in the areas of addiction, communication, learning, teaching, and the provision of therapeutic services. Foundational work in each of these areas of study, based mostly in face-to-face interactions, will provide a standard beside which Internet-related behavior will be compared.

Internet psychology has blossomed both as a result of the large numbers of individuals using the technology and as a result of its unique social interaction features. For instance, in comparison to everyday social interactions, the Internet allows for communication to flow from single individuals to large numbers of other individuals instantaneously. Further, this ability is shared by all individuals on the Internet, whether they are located in major urban areas or in remote locales. The Internet also allows for both asynchronous (meaning not at the same time) and simultaneous communication among individuals. Such features allow individuals to communicate when it is most convenient for them and also in such a way as to reach others whom they might not otherwise meet because of their locales.

One asynchronous Internet-based technology is an electronic bulletin board, an online location where information can be posted by individuals so that anyone who later visits the location can see the message posted. The original message poster may then receive a message back, in the form of another message left in the same place or as a private message sent directly to the original poster. What is unusual about an electronic bulletin board in comparison to everyday communication, however, is that other individuals may join in and have other conversations in and around the original conversation without the knowledge of the original poster. For an outsider observing such an interaction, there would be no way to determine the true identity of the individual participants, nor would there be a way for the outsider to know if everyone listed as participating in the conversation has read or otherwise processed the interaction in its entirety. Even more psychologically interesting is that the individuals in the conversation have no way of knowing how many others visiting the bulletin board might be paying attention to their communications and not responding, a practice commonly called lurking.

Similar to bulletin boards, other technologies, such as chat rooms, provide virtual locations where information can be communicated simultaneously, sometimes described as “in real time,” and where it is publicly on view. Chat rooms also raise issues about anonymity and uncertainty as to who might be observing one’s conversation. Rather than communicating in a somewhat timeless environment, as on a bulletin board, many people may communicate at the same time in a chat room, much like being at a party or large social gathering. The only differences are that no one has immediate physical contact or cues, everyone can see what everyone else is saying, and the conversation is preserved in writing in the chat room for a period of time. Also, to the extent that the conversations are preserved, there may be more time to analyze communications among individuals.

In both of these types of communications, the issue of boundaries, or how information and relationships are defined and limited, also may be perceived as and function in a way that is more fluid than in face-to-face interactions. Further, boundaries may be more vulnerable to intrusion from uninvited others because most communications are publicly observable. In many online environments, anyone can communicate with everyone all at once, people can communicate anything they want to, and everyone can respond all at once. As a result, communications can be overwhelmingly positive or negative due to the sheer number of responses one might receive. Also, communications may be jarring because of their content.

This reaction is attributable to another feature of Internet-based communications related to anonymity: psychological distance, the social proximity that individuals feel to others. It is something like a perceived safety or danger zone for interactions that have psychological consequences, such as emotional responses. In Internet-based communication, because of anonymity and because social interactions are computer mediated, where individuals may never see or hear each other, psychological distance can be great and have behavioral consequences in communication. While some Internet users may respond to such an environment by opening up emotionally and allowing themselves to be more vulnerable to others in expressing feelings or thoughts, other users might become more extreme and aggressive in terms of how they pursue communications and what they express.

These aspects of Internet-based communications are only a few of many that are interesting to psychologists. Other examples include the effect of this type of remote communication on existing social networks
and the formation of new social networks; group cohesion in online groups; the efficacy of online support groups; the development of online social skills; the psychological states of individual participants over time; and the relationship between online and “real-life” communications.

Importance

The Internet affects many different kinds of social behavior, including work communications, organizational behavior, dating behavior, everyday social communications, learning and teaching, and even health care. In terms of positive effects, the Internet allows for many benefits. One major benefit is that individuals in remote locations can participate actively in wide social, learning, and business networks, perhaps more so than they could if they were limited to their own locales. This may lead to increased transmission of new science, learning, and social data into such remote areas. It may also lead to decreased feelings of isolation in the individual participants as well as increased opportunities for such individuals.

One opportunity is Internet-based learning. In an online learning environment, individuals in remote locations can access educational opportunities that might otherwise be unavailable to them without traveling great distances. Similarly, such technologies allow for financial savings on intellectual resource acquisition and dispensation, as such resources can be made available to all needing it in one spot on the Internet. This same advantage translates into being able to reach a larger number of trainees than might typically be able to attend training because of time, geographic, or financial constraints. Finally, because the learning takes place online, where interactions and Web-related behavior can be tracked, new information about how trainees seek information, integrate it, and draw conclusions may be discerned, ultimately contributing to advances in teaching.

Another benefit for individuals in remote locations where health care providers are scarce is Internet-based medicine, such as telemedicine, or medical care provided at a distance. Such technologies can be invaluable in saving lives through prevention and informational or supportive treatments that complement face-to-face medical care. Such services may include health-care-related Web sites providing information, assessments, discussion lists for support, chat rooms devoted to individual health care topics, contact information for providers, and even an alternative means of sending messages to health care providers, such as through e-mail. Such Web sites are valuable not only to individual clients but also to their families, treatment providers, and others involved in health care, such as trainees and researchers.

Some of the positive aspects of the Internet also have drawbacks. For instance, rapid and instantaneous communication is good if the information communicated is good. If, however, it has errors or is vague or phrased in a way that is ambiguous in terms of its social tone, it could create conflict and social discomfort for all receiving the message, as well as for the sender.

Another negative aspect that has received attention is what some call Internet addiction. In this syndrome, individuals are judged as being dependent on their use of the Internet. Such dependence might be characterized by any of the following features: a desire to use the Internet more and more; using it more than intended; feeling a strong desire to cease using it or reduce the time spent using it; reducing or giving up other social behaviors to use the Internet; finding that personal Internet use is creating problems in other life activities because they have been neglected; and continued use despite knowledge of psychological or other problems caused or exacerbated by the Internet usage. Finally, “addicted” individuals who do not have access to the Internet may experience feelings of withdrawal. The term “addiction” has been used to describe this condition because many of these features are similar to those defining substance abuse and dependence problems. In terms of the potential scope of the problem, according to research conducted by Keith J. Anderson and published in the Journal of American College Health (2001), as many as 10 percent of college students may experience some feelings of dependence on the Internet.

Context

The Internet appears to be firmly in place in modern society as a major social, educational, and health-related resource. In 1998, the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth was established by the Health Resources and Service Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. This office is devoted to the advancement of telehealth and Internet-based medicine to improve public health service and research. Estimates suggest that, each year, more than sixty million people search for health information online, including searches for mental health information. In addition, communications technologies improve daily, reaching more homes. By 2012, for example,78.9 percent of all households in the United States had a personal computer, and 74.8 percent of all households had access to the Internet at home, according to the US Census Bureau. In this same time period, many workplaces gained an online presence to conduct their business and communicate with their employees. Universities followed suit, using the Internet to host class materials, classes, and even academic conferences.

Understanding the psychology of the Internet remains a critical task. As Internet-based technologies work their way into more settings, the effects of this technology will need to be assessed for their impact on the individuals using the technology and the organizational structures hosting this type of communications network. In addition, it must be kept in mind that the Internet is an international communications medium. Like the telephone and the television, it can spread information anywhere that the technology is installed. Unlike these earlier technological advances, it is capable of transmitting far more information, more rapidly and to more people. The implications of such transmissions remain to be evaluated. As C. A. Bowers suggests in Let Them Eat Data (2000), these communications may have costs that are yet to be recognized.

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