Do You Go Online More or Less Than Everyone Else?
A new survey shows how many of us go online “almost constantly.” (Photo: Getty Images)
If it seems like everyone is always looking down and swiping around on their phones at restaurants, the store, at work, at home … well, you’re not imagining it.
A new survey from the Pew Research Center shows that about one in five Americans say they go online “almost constantly.”
Not surprisingly, many of those reporting going online “almost constantly” are in the 18-to-29-year-old age range (36 percent, compared with just 6 percent of those age 65 and older who say they go online at this frequency).
The survey also showed that nearly 75 percent of Americans go online every day, with 42 percent reporting going on line several times a day. Only 13 percent of people said they didn’t go online at all.
Of course, the survey showed a big link between mobile connectivity and being online — 87 percent of people with a smartphone, tablet, or some other kind of mobile device reported going online every day. And 27 percent of these people reported being online “almost constantly.”
(If you suspect you’re addicted to your phone, you can take this quiz here.)
Being too tied to the Web can come at a cost, though — recent research has shown that heavy Internet users who go offline may experience withdrawal symptoms, TIME reports.
Related: Stop ‘Phubbing’ Up Your Relationship
While Internet addiction is not listed as an official medical diagnosis in the latest version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V), health experts have been outspoken about how problematic Internet use and dependence can affect everyday activities.
In fact, the Bradford Regional Medical Center in Pennsylvania has launched a treatment program for people who are hooked on the Internet. Learn more about it in the video below:
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