PUBLIC OPINION > Constantly Surfing the Web Can Give You Mental Disorders

A recent study conducted at the University of Gothenburg suggests that constantly being online -- that includes being connected through your phone -- can make you develop mental disorders such as stress, sleep disturbances and depression. It sounds plausible, but we wanted to know if the public buys it.


Most people agree that constantly being connected to the Internet can make you develop mental disorders, but it was hardly unanimous. Many were skeptical of how the study was conducted, arguing that "mental illness seems a great stretch." However, it does seem like a logical conclusion. With only personal and second-hand experience to go by, most people believe being online constantly could very well lead the mind to darker places.

Teens Can Tell

If anyone knows the ill effects of being online every second of every day, it's teens. They were practically born online. They're on Facebook, they're on their smart phones, they're taking online classes, they're Googling the name of that guy who starred in "Rudie" and played Samwise in "Lord of the Rings" (it's Sean Astin.) Is it driving them crazy? They submit that it is.

Irrelevant to the Unemployed

Usually, older voters and full-time workers vote similarly. Likewise, younger voters, students and the unemployed vote similarly. But not here. Full-time workers, like teens, are convinced being online constantly can develop mental illness. Our guess is that full-time workers, also like teens, are online constantly for their jobs. It's hard to clock out when work follows you home.

Agnostics Are Going Crazy

Interestingly enough, religion correlated strongly here. As usual, atheist and Christian voters responded differently, with atheists feeling the being online could, in fact, make you develop mental illness. However, atheists didn't have the most extreme response. Rather, agnostics were some of the strongest believers... in Internet illness, that is.

If you'd like to vote on this question, dig deeper into the demographics, or engage in existing discussion about the topic, visit our poll about online insanity. We'd love to hear from you!