Addiction to Technological Gadgets and Its Impact Essays

Addiction to Technological Gadgets and Its Impact on Health and Lifestyle: A Study on College Students Abstract In the present era the introduction of modern technological gadgets has captured the attention of global population. The dependency of people on these technological gadgets and services provided by these has reached at such level that, without these, they can't think a step forward in the direction of their growth. The degree of dependency is leading to addiction of the tech-devices and services. Youth is the most vulnerable group among the population to be addicted to technology. The study was designed to examine the use of tech-devices by youth i.e. the time spent with the gadgets, the purposes behind use, and its impacts on mental health and life style. Using structured questionnaire, unstructured interviews and observation by the researcher, primary data were collected from 150 respondents of NIT, Rourkela. Findings of the study showed that most of the young respondents spend a large amount of their time with their tech-gadgets and services provided by them. The purposes of use i n most cases are pleasure driven rather than necessity driven. Again, it reveals that addiction to tech-devices has many negative impacts on the aspects relating to mental health of the respondents and has become a causal factor in the change of life style of young participants. The results are interpreted based on the current theories and implications for future are pointed out. Key words: Addiction, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Technological Gadgets and Services CHAPTER I Introduction The term technology comes from the Greek word "techne", which means the art or skill used in order to solve a problem, improve a pre-existing solution to a problem, achieve a goal, handle an applied input/ output relation or perform a specific function; technology is the making, modification, usage and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques and method of organisation (Liddel, Scott, Jones McKenzie, 1940). That means, it can refer to the collection of tools, including machinery, modification, arrangements and procedures. Over the last 200 years there has been a significant change in the term technology. In the 20th century i.e. during the industrial revolution the term has gained its popularity worldwide (Cradock Baldwin, 1833). Technology is the energy that acts as the driving force to drive or to run our lives. It is nothing but the results of the innovations and creativity of human beings. It converts the natural resources into consumer goods which are used by the society and human beings. It has brought the automation level into such a height that human effort and his time has been saved to a great extent. Due to this, the access to information has now become easier and the distant locations are getting closer. IT and communication system has provided such facilities that the world is now feeling like a small globe virtually. However not all technology has been used for peaceful purposes. The development of weapons of mass destruction has created serious threat to society throughout history. Reference: http://ethesis.nitrkl.ac.in/5544/1/e-thesis_19.pdf