The internet has become an integral component of the modern society . There are a wide range of activities that are now facilitated by the internet including communication, shopping, entertainment, studying, banking to name but a few. Internet usage has also increased over the last couple of years, with available statistics showing that between 1998 and 2017, the average number of Google searches each year has gone up from 9800 to more than 4.7 trillion. The number of internet users has increased by 82%. This means that each day, there are about 1 million new internet users. As the internet continues to be intertwined with every aspect of man’s lifestyle, so are its effects on the brain and cognitive development becoming apparent. The brain has many parts, but the prefrontal cortex is often mentioned as the part that makes human beings unique among all animal species (Grison, Heatherton & Gazzaniga 2015, p.59) point out that the entire prefrontal cortex plays a vital role in rational thought and different aspects of man's social life. This paper examines the impact of internet usage on the brain .
The fact that the internet has numerous benefits to the modern day society cannot be ignored . Through the internet, it is possible for a big spectrum of information that is important to our innovative lifestyles. This, in turn, provides man with the freedom to search for information much faster and find answers to solutions. By using the internet, people can enhance their productivity, examine their interests and in the long run, enhance the potential to innovate. In academics, the internet has been found to increase the manner in which students access information. Thanks to the internet, students can now get information even their teachers don’t know, a fact that allows for teachers to also learn from their students (Han et al ., 2015). The internet has also proved to be very useful in the workforce where it facilitates the development as well as the substantiation of services and products. However, the available trends indicate that the increased utilization and reliance on the internet is having a profound impact on the brain.
Delegate your assignment to our experts and they will do the rest.
Taken wholesomely, the human brain is a complex organ, and its development is impacted by a wide range of factors including genetics and the environment . Within the first two years of life, the volume of the brain expands three times, establishing the connections that make it possible for people to perceive the world, make decisions, think, build relationships and empathy, take into consideration risks and be part of a wide range of experiences. As children and babies grow, these capabilities also develop. The prefrontal cortex, in particular, is mostly mentioned as being responsible for the higher level executive functions of the brain such as decision making, judgment, memory, problem solving and emotional control ((Han et al ., 2015). This part of the brain develops throughout childhood and adolescence, doing this in response to external stimuli and genetics. The development of the prefrontal cortex goes on until one is 26 years old. Environmental factors have a significant impact on the manner in which the human brain develops. Given the high number of young people on the internet and the tremendous amount of time they spend on it, the internet can be categorized as an environmental factor that may significantly impact the development of the brain (Han et al ., 2015).
A considerable number of studies seeking to explore the impact of internet use on the brain have focused on how the internet affects cognition and cognitive development . Han et al . (2015) examine the manner in which the internet has remolded human cognition. They opine that throughout humankind's evolutionary history, technological inventions such as arithmetic systems, language, writing, and primitive tools have altered man's cognitive systems. Han et al . (2015) add that the internet is no exception and that since its advancement approximately thirty years ago, it has had a profound impact on man's cognitive functions. They point out that the internet environment has multifaceted affordances which have played an integral role in changing the thoughts and behaviors of the users. Han et al . (2015) highlight the behaviors of people who have grown up in the age of the internet, popularly known as “Digital Natives.” They state that ‘Digital Natives” tend to gravitate towards information processing behaviors that are shallow. These behaviors are characterized by reduced deliberation as well as fast attention shifting. Digital natives take part in increased multitasking behaviors that are strongly associated with poor abilities for executive control and heightened distractibility. In addition to that, they tend to exhibit higher rates of internet-related addictive behaviors.
The internet has had the most significant impact on adolescents and young adults . Han et al . (2015) discuss the effect that internet usage has on the adolescent brain. She argues that it is more than 25 years since the World Wide Web was invented and that it has helped revolutionize the society by facilitating unfettered internet access. Han et al . (2015) argue that available evidence shows that both adults and adolescents are utilizing the internet more than ever. She adds that another set of evidence shows that the time both the young and adults spend online does not result in the displacement of time used for other activities linked to well-being and health.
Nevertheless, there has been increasing concerns about the impact of internet usage on the cognitive abilities of young ones. According to Han et al . (2015), teachers that have been surveyed report that students who have grown up in the current era of widespread internet utilization are easily distracted and have short attention spans. Most adults feel that as a result of increased availability and use of digital technologies, today's young people have different cognitive skills and the question on how utilization of the internet impacts cognition is not simple enough to be solved by a single or few experiments. She adds that just like malnutrition or musical training, internet usage can be treated as an environmental exposure variable. But unlike malnutrition and musical training, the internet is widespread, and virtually the whole world has been exposed to it. The near-global exposure to the internet makes it nearly impossible to experiment comparing groups that have been exposed to the internet and those that are yet to be revealed.
The widespread utilization of the internet has also given rise to the problem of internet addiction . In their study, Han et al . (2015) examine the microstructure abnormalities in young individuals found to be addicted to the internet. They report that young people are presenting internet addiction disorder exhibit some brain abnormalities such as lower grey matter as well as structural brain changes over the addiction period. In another brain imaging study, the researchers report that young individuals aged between 20 and 25 years had a craving for online games and that these cravings were in many ways similar to those exhibited by individuals with substance addiction. Apart from highlighting the link between addiction to the internet and the structure of the brain, the brain imaging studies also bring to light the relationship between substance addiction and internet addiction, and raises the question whether the brain experiences both substance and internet and substance addiction is the same fashion. Studies that have so far been done reported that given the addictive tendencies of young people who utilize tobacco, alcohol and other drugs, their risk of being internet and game addicts is very high. Studies have also established that for both internet and substance addiction, the same sections of the brain are normally activated.
The decision to choose the topic discussed in this essay is that I love the internet and I can’t imagine a day without the internet. Cutting off the internet will definitely deprive me many things I find essential in my day to day life including communicating with friends and families, receiving and sending money, shopping, reading local and global news to mention but a few. I heavily rely on the internet for entertainment, and I believe I am slightly addicted to it. Exploring the current topic has helped widened my understanding of what the internet is actually doing to my brain. With this in mind, I will definitely strive to use the internet in ways that will not impact my brain negatively. Research on the impact of internet use on the brain has mostly focused on adolescents and young adults. Today, even young children aged 2 years are getting exposed to the internet. This means that more research is needed to understand better how the exposure to the internet affect and alter their brain. In addition to that, more research is required to have a clear understanding of the long-term effects of internet usage on the brain.
References
Grison, Sarah, Heatherton, Todd & Gazzaniga, Michael (2017). Psychology in Your Life . Norton.
Han, D. H., Kim, S. M., Bae, S., Renshaw, P. F., & Anderson, J. S. (2015). Brain connectivity and psychiatric comorbidity in adolescents with Internet gaming disorder. Addiction Biology , 22(3), 802-812.
