Читать книгу Overcoming Internet Addiction For Dummies - David N. Greenfield - Страница 70

The growing intolerance of boredom is a significant factor for Internet addiction. While screen time may not always provide anything of great value, it can fill a void and provide an escape from the uninteresting moments in life. Many children, teens, tweens, and young adults are unable to sit for even a moment without reaching for their phone (this is probably true for many adults as well). When was the last time you waited in line at the post office or in a waiting room and didn’t pull out your phone? The ability to tolerate time without distraction has seriously eroded.

You may have noticed, in both yourself and your children, a growing intolerance of even a moment of doing nothing, and the easiest thing to do to escape that discomfort is to pick up your phone. However, these are moments that provide a potential opportunity to experience the spark of self-reflection or creativity, or the impetus for social connection. In short, not giving in to the urge to pick up the phone creates new neuropathways that give your child or teen an opportunity to sit with themselves for a moment and to be with themselves on a deeper level.

If your child’s attention span seems shorter than yours was as a child, this is not your imagination, as intolerance of boredom and impatience has become a significant side effect of screen and technology use. I’ve seen patients who can’t tolerate even two seconds without picking up their phone; their attention often seems to be elsewhere, and their patience and ability to delay gratification appear to be diminished. The net effect (pun again) of this pattern of endless screen use further serves to solidify addictive patterns and to weaken more positive self-management strategies.

Boredom is necessary for achieving life balance. Screens can rob youth of the ability to tolerate the discomfort of boredom with the promise of something shinier and more attractive — but this occurs at a cost of endless distraction.