Psychology and the Internet: Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, and Transpersonal Implications

Eight years have passed since publication of the then groundbreaking first edition of this work. During that time, the internet has become ever more prominent the world over, with 200% growth in usage outside the US, 100% growth in usage within the US, and with the highest penetration in America at 68% of all households. Psychology of the Internet, 2e explores the psychological considerations to using the internet and the internet’s effects upon the user. New coverage explores how children use the internet and how this exposure may be shaping their social development. Coverage also includes the effect of child exposure to pornography, predators online, and bullying online. Research on adult disinhibition over the internet is discussed, particularly the tendency for people to more readily self disclose in an online environment. Extensive coverage of socialization on line includes coverage of online dating practices, blogs, and sex online. Internet addiction is covered with respect to definition, precursors, and co-morbidity. Sociological research is also explored as to how people meet and work together online, computer mediated communication, and virtual work teams. Additional chapters explore the burgeoning availability and effectiveness of telehealth/online therapy, the implications of an increasingly virtual society of internet communities, the internet as a global brain, and the possibility that virtual experience may be expanding real consciousness.