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Discomgoogolation?


Nearly half of Britain is suffering from discomgoogolation - a feeling of stress or anxiety when unable to access the internet.

The disorder was identified in a YouGov survey, which found that 44 per cent of Brits feel stress or anxiety when they cannot get to their favourite websites, and over a quarter (27 per cent) would experience rising stress levels.

Dr David Lewis, the psychologist who worked on the study and discovered the disorder by measuring heart rates and brainwave activity, believes broadband is to blame.

'The proliferation of broadband has meant for the first time in history we've entered a culture of 'instant answers,'' he said.

'A galaxy of information is just a mouse click away and we have become addicted to the web.

'When unable to get online, discomgoogolation takes over.'

Dr Lewis found that both brain activity and blood pressure of participants in the study would increase in response to being cut off the internet.

The word is formed from 'discombobulate' - to confuse or frustrate - and Google.

A staggering 76% of those questioned suggested that they could not survive without the internet and were regular users on a daily basis. This leaves on 24% of the UK population able to go about their daily lives without thinking about or being concerned about the internet – a very worrying state of affairs – but it gets worse!

Dr David Lewis also found out that 44% of those questioned felt anxious and stressed when they were unable to gain access to the internet, suggesting that internet use has reached epidemic proportions in the UK.

Interestingly, when we hear that so many people are still scared to use the internet for their personal affairs, the survey found that 26% of those in the survey would not be able to organise their lives without access to the internet on a daily basis.

While these figures are maybe not as surprising to some who are heavily involved in the industry it does crystallise the worst fears of many. The internet is taking over our lives on a daily basis and is firmly grounded into UK culture.

Source YouGov


Posted on: 05-09-08