Studies show that forcing children to use computers is creating techno-anxiety and impairing the learning process. Louise MacLeod reports
There may be a huge vault of health information on the Internet, but how healthy is using the technology itself?
Researchers in the United States have recently reported that people who spend even a few hours online become more depressed and withdrawn, while investigators into British attitudes to computer use believe up to 25% of the population may be suffering from techno-anxiety.
Since anxiety shunts up blood pressure, increases the heart rate and sends surges of adrenalin through the body, all of which have been linked to cardiovascular disease, reduced immunity and other long-term damage, one could be forgiven for thinking the World Wide Web should perhaps carry a health warning.
Psychologist Dr Mark Brosnan of the University of Greenwich, United Kingdom, who has been studying technophobia in Britain, Hong Kong and Japan, says the buzz and hype that surround the possibilities of the “connected” world are obscuring the fact that people of all ages have real anxieties about using the technology.
“We expected levels of technophobia to go down in younger children, but our research into five-year-olds showed 50% were computer anxious and didn’t want to use computers at all,” says Brosnan.
Worryingly, given the drive to get schools connected, Brosnan says they found the same computer phobic levels among 18-year-old students at the University of Greenwich, and similar levels in the Far East.
`This could be doing significant damage to our ability to learn,” says Brosnan. “If you’re anxious, you’re not likely to be working or learning at your best, and you’re likely to make more mistakes, which will re- affirm your anxiety.”
He adds that the information overload posed by the Internet can make things even more stressed.
“Ancedotally, a lot of people say they can’t cope with searching the Internet because most of the information it brings up is not what they want, but they still have to read it, just in case, before they can discard it – which is time-consuming and stressful.”
For girls, worries partly stem from images of computers as boys’ toys and the competition to get screen-time. But both sexes suffer from lack of good tuition.
“Parents buy computers because they are afraid of depriving their children. But children get anxious because their parents can’t show them how to use them. Once they get to school, anxiety rises with the competition and pressure,” says Brosnan.
Dr John Todman, a psychologist at Dundee University in Scotland who also studies the phenomenon, says first experiences set the tone.
“If people have a relaxed early experience with computers and feel in control, to some extent that inoculates them against later negative experiences.
“The trouble is that, for many people, the first time they’re faced with using a computer is for a work- or course-related procedure where they are being assessed. The pressure can cause feelings of anxiety. Many people feel the computer controls them rather than vice versa.”
Only 3%to 4% of people are likely to be true technophobes who will make serious life changes to avoid contact with a terminal, says Todman.
But his research suggests that up to one in four people may have the sort of anxiety that interferes with their efficiency at work or at school.
So what can you do to take the strain out of Web-working?
The most important thing, says Todman, is to play around and learn the general principles.
“You need to get familiar with the things that you want to do before you really need to do them. Even better, find someone who is reasonably confident – not necessarily an expert – who can stand behind you and give you reassurance without interfering.”
And to combat information overload, says Brosnan, concentrate on building up a list of good reliable sites in your area of interest and search these for information rather than using general search engines.
This keeps results more manageable, reduces the time commitment and removes the anxiety of getting information from unknown sources.