Table of content
Computer-induced health problems
Research conducted by India Bytes suggested that by 2014, the number of individuals using computers both at home and at school or working places had reached one billion (Fogg & Nass, 1997, n.p).This fact evidently shows that computers have become part and parcel of us. We cannot do without them. Computers are used in almost every field; in offices, in schools, in hospitals, factories, among other areas. The computers have changed the way of life in the society both negatively and positively. Considering some positive effects, the computers have made performance of tasks to be fast and easier. They thus saving time, human effort and costs.
Majority of institutions are using computers to keep records, while others uses them to manage accounts, paying bills, listening to music and watching movies (Woessmann & Fuchs,2004, n.p). Some uses them for research purposes, communication especially through the social media, and also used as a great educational tool. Computers have vast usage and are of much importance to the society; we cannot imagine a society without computers. How would it look like?
On the other side, nothing is so good that it lacks negativity. As much as computers have vast positive effects and advantages, so does the negative effects and disadvantages. Computers bring about some negative health effects, behavioral and also in the financial aspects. Like for instance, some individuals wastes much of their time glued to their computers, but they are not doing anything of any value other than maybe playing games and watching movies or watching offensive materials like pornography. It is obviously evident that computers impact negatively on individuals and society in general.
Computer-induced health problems
The improper and prolonged use of computer can bring about some disorders on the user. The first problem an individual can encounter is associated with muscles fatigue. The user starts to complain of back pain, numbness in the arms, shoulders and also chest pains. Some of these problems associated with skeletal and muscle fatigue may be due to the sitting style which may not be correct when using the computer.
Also, one may experience repetitive stress injuries, which may be indicated by the pain experienced in the neck, shoulders all the way to the fingers. Actually, one of the disorder affecting fingers and wrist and which results from the usage of computers is carpal tunnel syndrome (Villani, 2001, p.g 393).
Another common problem is the visionary problem. Bright light or even flickering images can strain the computer user’s eyes. The constant focusing on the screen can cause eyes to be dry. One of the known problems is the computer vision syndrome which majority of careless users have suffered. Another common problem is the headache. Due to the increased tension of the muscles and pain in the neck mainly at the base of the skull, headache is a common problem with computer users.
To some extent, the prolonged use of computer may affect eye power resulting to headache. Surprisingly, another problem caused by continuous use of computers daily is obesity. Individuals, especially children who spend much of their time playing with computers tend to forsake activities that may keep their bodies active. They tend to eat more and stay on the computer screen all day without taking some time to keep fit and relax their minds.
With grownups, the weight gain may be due to the result of physical inactivity due to long working hour. In ladies, it is believed that there is additional cause of menopause. Prolonged use of computers may cause the users to have poor health which may be caused by inadequate sleep. Computers can lead to cases of loss of concentration, dizziness and weariness. All these factors affect human beings’ health.
The area of computer technology is one that is difficult to assign set of moral codes. Considering the change in behavior, everyone is affected; adults and children. If for instance we consider children, then here are some effects computers impacts on them. A survey conducted on a thousand teenagers showed that 95% had played video games on the previous day of survey, keeping in mind that they played games rated as Adult-only, which evidently shows the violation of manners (Markus,1994,n.p).
It is also found that many children tend to imitate the actions and films they watch on their computers. Children who mostly play violent games tend to be aggressive and are more prone to confrontation with their teachers, engage in fights with their peers and generally decline in school performance.
Children who spend time with their computers tend to be antisocial and eventually develop poor relationship with their parents, peers and also teachers at school. There is stunt growth in their social skills. Kids who are used to learning at computer speed often struggle to pay attention in classrooms. Pornography is highly prevalent on the internet, thus access to sexually explicit materials at young age will affect the children’s thinking.
Adults are not left behind. Nearly twelve million people are sex addicts, due to accessibility of sex materials extracted from internet; an effect of computers. This effect makes individual to engage in sexual activities to extreme cases. The adult user may withdraw from friends and family as they spend more time on computers (Karavidas, Lim & Katsikas, 2005, p.g 698). 
Marriage life may start to have problems as relationship between couples withers and they also stop attending social gatherings, and will not even make time for their children or their family in general. When they interact with friends, they become more irritable causing much social harm. Ultimately, the use of computers in excess controls the individual emotions. They drift slowly into the artificial world, gaming all the time. It is also evident that the excessive exposure to the internet pornography warps a person’s ideas about sexuality.
There are areas where computers make guys go unethical. This includes the computer crimes like hacking, done by computer experts to steal from other people’s credit cards or even hack in banks and steal money. The hackers also may extract confidential documents from institution, keeping everyone at risk. This shows the negative effect of the computer in the behavior aspect.
Cyber security is the protection of information systems from theft or damage. This includes protecting them against harmful code injections from individuals like hackers. Any attack made to any firm by hackers can be dangerous and can bring about financial conflict in the firm. To restore the way the system was could be expensive, showing some of the disadvantage of computers. Some hackers may also demand a lot of money after hacking a firm’s system.
This may be costly to the firm and may threaten the financial position of the firm. Large corporations are the common targets, aimed at a huge financial gain. Government and military computer systems are commonly attacked by activists and foreign powers (Markus, 1994, p.g 120). Financial systems, police and intelligence agencies are also face threats of being hacked. Computers when handled by dangerous people can bring about a large financial loss.
It is obvious that computer is the most commonly used entertainment device. Through internet, individuals get to download files and videos, some of which are offensive. Guys also download games which without doubt need the internet connections to download. To download such things need one to pay for them. Thus despite the positive side of accessing computers, then one must pay for those services because nothing just comes freely. Sadly, guys spend finances downloading offensive and unnecessary materials.
We obviously cannot stop using computers in this generation. On the other hand, computers are a big deal when it comes to health, behavioral and financial position of individuals and government. All the negative effects of computers can be overcome if at all individual uses them rightfully and in the safe manner.
When using the computer, one should make sure he /she establishes proper sitting posture to avoid muscles fatigue and pains in the neck. One should also set the proper screen brightness to avoid eyes irritation. Individuals should avoid being computer zombies and make time for body exercises to avoid cases of obesity. Guys should try and create time for their families, friends and relatives and not all the time on the computer.
Socialization will help one grow, other than all time being on the computer. Parents should guide children on then proper use of computers. Offensive sites like pornographic ones should be blocked. Violent games which makes children aggressive should be uninstalled in the computer and children be guided in the proper usage of computers (Markus, 1994, p.g 120).
Individuals should learn computers to use them in the positive way to help, other than hacking others. Those found guilty of hacking and putting any firm in financial crisis should be dealt with accordingly. Every individual should use the computer in a better way, either to help themselves or others. Each and every precaution should be taken to maintain the well being of humans while using computers. If only these precautions are taken, then the computer will be of much use and help.
References
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Woessmann, L., & Fuchs, T. (2004). Computers and student learning: Bivariate and multivariate evidence on the availability and use of computers at home and at school.
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=619101
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