Prof. Nevzat Tarhan: "Screen exposure disrupts the brain reward system."

Noting that when a person is playing online games or spending time in a digital environment, a large part of his mind is focused on this action, Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan said, "A person thinks about when to be in a digital environment and these thoughts occupy most of his life. This includes various types of digital addiction such as digital gaming addiction and digital gambling addiction."
Prof. Tarhan: "If there is a safe environment at home, if parental relationships are healthy and children can meet their psychological needs, the risk of this addiction decreases."

President of Üsküdar University, Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan discussed the issue of digital addiction.

Digital addiction means that a person is overly preoccupied with digital elements

Stating that digital addiction means that a person is excessively busy with digital elements, Prof. Tarhan expressed that "This addiction is of two types. The first one is called 'dependence', which is defined as behaviors that adversely affect the person's life and create addiction, and the second is called 'addiction', which causes the person to lose their free will and become a prisoner. Digital addiction is when a person is depended on the digital world, and in this case, the person is at the center of the addiction. The first symptom of addiction is that the action taken by the person becomes the most priority and important issue in their life. For example, when a person is playing a digital game or spending time in a digital environment, a large part of their mind is focused on this action. The person thinks about when one will be in a digital environment, and these thoughts occupy most of their life. This includes various types of digital addiction such as digital gaming addiction and digital gambling addiction."

As a generation growing up in the digital world, young people are most affected by these types of addictions

Stating that young people, as a generation growing up in the digital world, are the group most affected by these types of addiction, Prof. Tarhan expressed that "Young people who see the digital world as a local environment can easily use this technology and therefore are more likely to abuse it."

Stating that addiction and diabetes were identified as similar diseases at the Addiction Congress, Prof. Tarhan said that “In diabetes, prediabetes (pre-diabetic condition) develops with the deterioration of insulin receptors as a result of a high-carbohydrate diet for many years. In this case, blood sugar becomes impaired, and diabetes occurs. If diabetes is left untreated, insulin insufficiency occurs, and insulin injections may be required. Similarly, in addiction, constant preoccupation with the elements of pleasure (digital media, substances, entertainment, etc.) leads to addiction over time. First, dopamine receptors are disrupted before addiction (pre-addiction). As with diabetes, when dopamine receptors are impaired, the person seeks more dopamine, i.e. more pleasure. This leads to reward deficiency syndrome. The person puts the addictive substance at the center of their life, this can be digital, virtual or chemical. It does not matter what the addiction is because the same dopamine system is affected."

Excessive mental preoccupation is the main symptom...

Expressing that "One of the main symptoms of addiction is excessive mental preoccupation," Prof. Tarhan stated that "The person constantly thinks about the object of addiction and this causes the sense of control to be lost. For example, the person may say, 'I am only going to play for two hours from now on,' but the next day they will be back in the same state. These unsuccessful attempts to quit and the loss of a sense of control are the main symptoms of addiction."

The social media generation is forced to mature in existence

Prof. Nevzat Tarhan explained that today, X, Y, Z generations are mentioned, and that Generation X, as a generation that grew up with radio, socialized with the radio and communicated with the world, and continued his remarks as follows:

"Generation Y, on the other hand, is a generation that socializes with television. Generation Z, on the other hand, is a generation that has socialized and communicated with social media and has made social media the most important communication element of their lives. There are big and rapid differences between these three generations. While older generations are maturing in adversity, the social media generation is having to mature in affluence. In human life, children begin to mature with adolescence. For example, a child perceives the world as a revolved place and expects everything they want to happen immediately. However, as one grows up, one faces the realities of life. The world is not just about them and they are not the only passenger on the bus. There are other people too. Learning this fact takes time and is part of the maturation process. However, some families raise their children as the leaders of the house, and the child continues to perceive everything as an order that revolves only around them. The child, who wants a toy car when he is little, starts to want real cars as he grows up and the threshold of satisfaction increases. One of the biggest risks of the digital age is that this easy accessibility and abundance has created a generation that is unable to manage pleasure."

Haste and impatience have become quite common nowadays

Noting that haste and impatience have become quite common today, Prof. Nevzat Tarhan stated that "Feelings of respect and shame have weakened. People are becoming more and more self-centered and see the world as a place that revolves only around their own interests. The most important indicator of psychological maturation is the ability to discipline one's ego. A person must be able to distinguish between their own personality boundaries and those of others. The lack of this skill negatively affects psychological maturation and resilience and makes the person vulnerable to diseases. At the same time, this also isolates the individual."

The approach of 'if it is not good for you, throw it away' is wrong!

Stating that one of the biggest problems of this age is loneliness and that there is self-centeredness, that is, narcissistic personality traits, in the background of this, Prof. Tarhan said that the idea that "the world should be as I want" creates deep problems in relationships.

Stating those posts such as "If it is not good for you, throw it away", which are frequently seen on social media, actually dull the ability to solve problems, Prof. Tarhan expressed that "This approach is also seen in marriages. If there is a problem, divorce is immediately resorted to, and even new generations have become afraid to get married. However, people need to develop the ability to cope with difficulties. The search for convenience and comfort has become widespread. As a result, marriages are declining, the marriage-divorce cycle is becoming widespread, and the institution of marriage is suffering. There is a social decay in the world, the erosion of values is accelerating. At the heart of this is self-centeredness and self-interest. A lack of empathy is at the heart of this problem. Empathy is the ability to understand the limits of others. It does not mean making excessive sacrifices; however, it is necessary to understand the feelings and limits of others. Lack of empathy is one of the main causes of evil."

Some people can pull a knife on their mom or dad who takes their modem

Prof. Nevzat Tarhan noted that technology addiction and digital addiction are similar to the criteria in substance addiction and continued as follows:

"When we apply the same metrics to digital addiction, screen exposure, we see symptoms such as excessive mental preoccupation, failed attempts to quit, for example. The person continues this behavior despite noticing the bad consequences. Examples of dangerous use include behaviors such as being sleep deprived, being busy with the phone while driving. In addition, even though the person has economic difficulties or loses money, he can continue his dependent behavior. This is where the concepts of dangerous use and harmful use come into play. With dangerous use, there are social consequences. In harmful use, on the other hand, the person continues his harmful behavior despite having health problems. For example, if someone with a stomach or lung condition continues to smoke. There is a similar situation with digital addiction. The person does not go to school, ruins his future, family relations deteriorate, but despite this, he continues to use. So much so that some people can pull a knife on their mother or father who takes their modem. In one case, the person urinated in a plastic bottle to avoid wasting time in his room. I mean, his addiction had gone that far."

The brain is not saturated with the pleasure hormone known as dopamine...

Stating that in this case, the person begins to be unable to perform his daily functions, Prof. Nevzat Tarhan said, "He does not go to work, goes late, plays games during the daytime, fails in business or school life. Screen exposure, just like substance abuse, disrupts the brain's reward system and leads to similar results. The brain is not saturated with the pleasure hormone known as dopamine... Sometimes this addiction manifests itself in the form of gambling, sometimes in the form of digital games, and sometimes in the form of other digital content. For example, a mother or father does not take care of the child at home, and emotionally neglects the child by constantly saying, "I have a job, I am busy." Young children are often given phones or tablets, and by the time they are three or four years old, they are still unable to speak. These children with delayed speech problems do not have developed word production areas in their brains. If this problem is past the age of four, it becomes very difficult for the child to learn how to produce words. This condition is called "learned autism". These children exhibit autism-like behaviors; Although his academic skills are good, his social and emotional skills remain weak. They can't chat, laugh in social situations, and get lonely. All these are considered among the symptoms of addiction."

There are certain criteria for digital addiction

Stating that there are certain criteria regarding digital addiction, Prof. Nevzat Tarhan said, "When deprived, the person enters a crisis. In 2017, we developed and published a criterion called 'Fomo' (Fear of Missing Out). This criterion expresses the person's fear of missing out. When he cannot connect to the internet, he exhibits behaviors such as getting angry, arguing and fighting. If there is no internet where he goes, he is under a lot of stress."

If there is a safe environment at home, the risk of addiction decreases

Stating that games have become more attractive because there are ready-made rewards in games, which motivates the person very seriously, Prof. Tarhan said, "Therefore, when the person is prevented by other people while playing games, he starts to fight. If the person is playing fanatically, this can also lead him to violence. Fanaticism is also a form of addiction. For example, someone who is a football fanatic can sacrifice himself for football. Such situations are similar to gaming addiction. We see people falling off a cliff while taking selfies, these are also examples of dangerous use. This type of risky behavior may not seem very important when there is a certain proportion in society, because there are always risky people. However, the situation we see the most is that children become addicted more easily if family ties are weak and there is no safe, regulated environment at home. If there is a safe environment at home, if parental relationships are healthy and children can meet their psychological needs, the risk of addiction is reduced."

Human beings also have psychological needs

Explaining that just as people have needs such as food, beverage, protein, carbohydrates and greens, they also have psychological needs, Prof. Tarhan said:

"While parents take care of their children's physical needs, they may not be meeting their psychological needs with the same care or they may be misleading. People need attention, emotional sharing. Being a parent is not just about making the child happy. Preparing the child for life means teaching him to cope with difficulties. For example, one of the common mistakes in our culture is that when a child starts to walk and wants to get on the seat, we immediately pick him up and put him on the seat, so that he doesn't fall. The child achieves his goal but does not develop a sense of self-confidence because he cannot achieve it with his own efforts. Whereas in developed countries, for example in Japan, the child is abandoned, tries to get out. He falls, he gets up, he tries again."

The thrill-seeking makes you addicted to the digital world...

Expressing that the first step in coping with addiction is usually a detox process, Prof. Tarhan stated that "Just as detox is done in substance addiction, detox is also applied in digital addiction. For example, they take children to nature camps for three months in Japan, and they take them away from digital devices and isolate them. UNESCO also took a decision on this issue and Türkiye complied with this decision. This year, the Ministry of Education also supported the ban on the use of mobile phones in schools. Mobile phones will no longer be used in schools because it has become a global danger. It is not easy to completely ban digital devices because these devices are constantly in our hands. However, the important thing is to teach them to use these devices wisely. Addiction is actually a consequence. We need to find out the reasons behind it. In most cases, there is hidden depression due to the fact that the person is unhappy, and they resort to digital addiction as a technique to reduce their stress. Some people even become addicted to the digital world due to thrill-seeking. Someone who is not happy sees these tools as means of happiness. If a person learns to be happy and manages to manage dopamine production in their brain in a balanced way, they can get rid of addiction."

In our everyday lives, we manage the chemistry in our brains

Explaining that we manage chemicals such as dopamine and serotonin in our brain, Prof. Tarhan concluded his remarks as follows: "We manage the chemistry in our brain in our everyday lives. This is called 'neuromanagement'. For example, when you are studying for the exam, you say, 'I will succeed!' and you release dopamine into your brain. This expectation of dopamine release, that is, the expectation of reward, gives the brain a reward. When the reward is reached, dopamine secretion decreases and the brain searches for a new reward. When you postpone the reward and reach the goal, your brain continues to release dopamine slowly in the process. It is necessary to break the cycle. There is a vicious circle. If that cycle is broken somewhere, it can be fixed. It is not something that cannot be fixed. Most of the time, those who succeed for six months bring their backs."

 

Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)