Blog addiction and blog popularity

By: Michael Garmahis - [psychology]
Since almost 10 years ago psychiatrist Ivan Goldberg used for the first time concept of Internet addiction, his colleagues created the whole list of various Internet addictions. The psychologist Michael Dernakovsky added one more - blog addiction.

- What is the start of blog addiction?

- As well as for other addictions it is need for satisfaction. The person looks for a way of getting of pleasure from something and having found it, tries to put process on the stream, to transform it into the channel for getting of satisfaction. An axiom - experiences with rats and two pedals. Pressing one, rats received meal, cause of hunger. Pressing the second pedal, rats had a sensation of excitation through energization of electrodes in brain. In spite of the fact that hunger was stronger reason, rats died of hunger near that pedal where they took pleasure. The motivation to pleasure for them was stronger, than fear of death.

- Is blog addiction so strong, as addiction on pleasure by rats?

- Quite probably. If the person receives a lot of pleasure from blogs, he can refuse both from sleep, from meal and from any other things important for his health. Another matter: how the person can receive satisfaction in blogs.

- How?

- The person has a weight of social needs. First, social need for the status: the higher the status, the more opportunity for "survival". It is necessary for man to feel above, more considerably. He finds a way, putting the information on the blogs.

- Is it similar to desire of the teenager to leave on a fence an inscription: «John was here»?

- I think it is a little bit other need. The desire to leave on a fence the message has less status. It is other need - to be beyond, which impose a society and parents, to feel liberated and freely, to show it to other people (as a rule, the person writes on the fence in the company).

The principal cause of writing posts in blogs (if it does not has financial motivation or the motivation connected with PR of any organization, action or own name) - to show, that I am clever, worthy of respect and I try to raise my status in opinion of the public.

Conducting virtual diaries can be caused by other needs. For example, need for dialogue or for comments. Someone wishes to be allocated. He dreams to be a source of competent opinion in various information sources, but not having such opportunity, makes comments on blogs.

- But some Internet-users cannot live outside of the blog. They are shivering literally, if they are not online.

- Do you mean those who writes or those who reads?

- Is there a difference?

- And considerable one. The person, who reads, feels necessity of reception of the information. Someone switch simply TV channels for this purpose and someone searches for the information in blogs. He physically is up to reception of the information and simultaneously feels necessity of strong emotions which make an emission of endorphins in brain. As a result the person feels pleasure.

- Does blogs give strong emotions?

- Certainly. There are periodically sensations in blogs which start strong emotional experience by this or that user. The person remembers this condition and then tries to find it again.

Absolutely other pleasure feels those who write. The desire to have a blog is wish «to increase the territory» by them, to raise the status and to find satisfaction. Moreover at the certain time appears a competition: other users share their opinions. Their correspondence turns to a marathon in which everyone wishes to become the winner.

- Does anonymity have main part in the phenomenon of blogs?

Probably. The communications is a medal with the reverse. It gives on opportunity to be recognized and respect and on the contrary to test anger of a society. Therefore the communications is always threat to a self-estimation. In blogs the reverse of medal vanishes: you can dialogue safely, not being afraid to receive a negative estimation of a society.

- Why such way of dialogue is fashionable today, especially in comparison with dialogue in chats and forums?

- Dialogue in chats is very short, blogs have more information (keeping an opportunity of dialogue, blog introduce knowledge, status, self-esteem) and more emotions. The more information person has the stronger it is. It is also the reason why people like news.

- Have Internet-users more trust to blog information?

- The information in mass-media depends on interests of group which defines what interests an audience has. There is the same group of persons in blogs with the disturbing expectations and desires which absorbs gossips and rumors. The information in mass-media is open for everyone and in blogs it is exclusive. Their status sharply rises such way. If you touch the secret, you receive more endorphins.

- Blog addiction can be compared to any other kind of addiction?

- The concept of blog addiction actually is just invented. I had no such clients yet. But it is possible the Internet-addiction is very similar or addiction on computer games. The simplest symptoms are sleeplessness, exhaustion. The person can not to sleep for hours or even days.

- Can blog addiction be dangerous for the person or for his company?

- Only if the need of the person for dialogue or sensitivity is very expressed to any sort of information shocking. I had the client who stayed at office after work and he warned the family before, that it is the end of the month, a lot of work, etc. And he played three days without a break in a computer game. Eventually colleagues have taken out him for hands, shipped in a taxi and sent home. This client received enormous satisfaction from game which could be exhaustion for him.

- Is it possible to make addict on blogs absolutely normal person?

- I think, probably. You have to find the information which will be important for him (the main thing that it must touch his values), and periodically publish it on blog. When this information catches him, he will start to make comments.

I noticed that 70-80 % of the information on the blogs is not simply opinions, but also certain needs. For example, the need to travel: almost everyone who will comment travel post will be interested persons. I know, that many companies have three-four moderators which support forums under different names, constantly lift new themes for discussion. And periodically people who wish to increase their status come to them, add the remarks on each theme. They are involved.

- Why they write scandalous things on the blogs?

- For attraction of people. Rather sensational information does not appear so simply. The people who publish it, in most cases have definite purpose: to draw attention to the nick, or to the blog, or to the theme. Then he benefits something on this theme. Shocking, as a rule, is thought over and used purposefully.

Michael Garmahis (29) is journalist working in one of the Belarusian online media. For further information, please visit his web site.

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