| Chapter 2: | Background |
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Thus, they recommend interventions similar to those used to treat chemical substance abuse. According to the addiction model, a combination of neurochemical and behavioral bases explain addictive behavior. The addictive substance increases the dopamine levels in the brain, which leads to a craving for the substance in order to make one feel good and / or to prevent the self from feeling discomfort.
In an addicted family, there is always the addict and an enabler. Therefore, if the cybersex addict is married, the spouse is named as the enabler. In keeping with the addictions model, Carnes et al. (2001) have devised a “Cybersex Codependency Inventory.” The inventory helps an individual determine if she or he has become part of the partner’s compulsive or addictive behaviors. Answering 18 or more of the 35 questions determines one’s codependency behaviors.
The characteristics of addictions include increased tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, time spent in activities necessary for pursuit of the substance, loss of control or compulsivity, continuation despite adverse consequences, and preoccupation (Schneider & Weiss, 2001). Other compulsive disorders have been categorized as “addictions,” including gambling, overeating, shopping, and high-risk sexual behaviors. Online users can become addicted to the Internet much as one could become addicted to drugs or alcohol (Young, 2000). Whether it is an addiction or a compulsion, compulsive use of the Internet for pornography is not under the control of the conscious ego.
Griffiths (2000) describes a type of addiction called technological addiction. These are “operationally defined as non-chemical (behavioral) addictions that involve human-machine interaction” (p. 538). These addictions can be either passive or active, and usually contain “inducing and reinforcing features that may contribute to the promotion of addictive tendencies” (p. 538).
Schneider (2000) defines three distinct levels of cybersex users: