4 Mind 4 Life: Mental Health Tips

A recent study has confirmed that the search engine Google is changing your brain and altering the way it works, seriously. But then again, this really shouldn’t come as a surprise since any new technology is going to change the way that our neurons fire and brain works. Anyways, a group of people got money for a study called “The Google Effect” led by Betsy Sparrow at Columbia University. Findings from the study led by Betsy were published in the popular journal, “Science.”

How is Google changing your brain? What did The Google Effect study find?

Contrary to popular myth that using the internet is making people dumber, that wasn’t what the researchers found. What they found was the fact that using the Google search engine causes the brain to reorganize its memories for information. Instead of relying on what is called “Rote memory,” people are using new technology such as their computers and Google to get the job done. In other words, instead of people using their brains directly to pull up information are basically saying, “I can just quick go Google it instead of try to test my memory.”

Are human brains evolving with technology?

The findings shouldn’t really come as a surprise because people’s brains change as they have new experiences. If you blindfold yourself for a few days and cannot rely on vision, your brain will naturally rewire itself so that your sense of sound becomes more enhanced; this is a proven phenomenon. Similarly if you lost your hearing for a few days, you would begin to have increased visual skills.

Anyways, it makes total sense that since new technology is always being introduced that our brains evolve as we learn how to use it. These days it makes way more sense to just Google something rather than sit for an hour and try to dig a memory out of our subconscious. With such easy access to Google (via phones, computers, iPads, etc.) when people don’t know the answer to something or need to look up information, they just Google it. The study basically says that we are outsourcing our rote memory search to Google and taking the job away from our brain.

We know where to go to find information: Google

Sparrow was quoted as saying, “We’re not thoughtless empty-headed people who don’t have memories anymore.” She continued stating, “But we are becoming particularly adept at remembering where to go find things. And that’s kind of amazing.” What else is crazy is that Sparrow et al. at Columbia found that people are more likely to remember trivial facts if they think it will get erased from their computer, but will forget it if they are sure that it will be there. I’m sure I would fall victim to this as well because I rely on my computer for a lot of information. Knowing what Sparrow has done though and found through her study makes a lot of sense to me.

Losing your internet connection feels like losing a friend?

The team of researchers noted that losing your internet connection will feel like losing a friend. It doesn’t necessarily apply to everyone, but people that use their computers and the internet a lot have become dependent on the technology. Seriously try going 30 days without the internet or computer and I bet that you’ll have a tough time. A lot of people spend more time on the internet than they do interacting with real people. Maybe that’s why people are more prone to developing things like Schizoid Personality Disorder. Basically what we have created is a dependency to instant access to information; we rely on Google to give us information that we cannot remember.

What are the implications for relying on Google for all of our information?

Basically it’s tough to get away from Google once we become so accustomed to using it. The scientific paper for this study states, “We must remain plugged in to what Google knows.” Now those are pretty strong words saying “we must remain plugged in.” There’s where I disagree. I think that we can remain plugged into what Google knows and it would be smart to do so because it’s convenient, quicker, and easier. However, I think that “must” shouldn’t have been used in that sentence because someone could shut themselves off from technology and their brain would likely rewire itself and the person would be able to adapt.

Is our reliance on Google to help with memory a bad thing?

What may confuse some people is that our reliance on Google for information isn’t a bad thing at all. Some people may initially get confused when they read this article and stop using the internet altogether; that wouldn’t be smart. Humans throughout history have been relying on other information reservoirs (e.g. other people) to help them out for years. Basically what Sparrow says is that before Google, humans were just asking other people that they knew to help recall information through what are referred to as “group memories” or memories that are passed on from human to human in groups. So if you forgot something about a certain place or event, you would just ask a person (family member, friend, etc.) with knowledge in that area. The nice thing about using Google is that you can quickly get awesome information without having to even pick up the phone and call someone that you know.

Nicolas Carr asks “Is Google Making Us Stupid?”

Nicolas Carr is a guy that wrote an article back in 2008 which shocked some people saying that digital devices and technology may be making us less intelligent. I will say that I think we’ve gotten mentally lazier because we can outsource so many tasks to other technological outlets. With that said, I think it makes sense to just use technology for what you can because it’s quicker. For example, instead of trying to multiply 10382732 x 28723792 in your head on a homework problem, it would make a lot more sense to just use a calculator or search engine. In other words, people are using technology when it makes sense to do so and could save them time and stress.

Final thoughts regarding The Google Effect study

It seems as though using Google actually may be freeing up parts of our brain to use for other, more creative pursuits. Most people in the field of psychology know that it is easier to learn and understand complex concepts when the brain doesn’t have to worry about remembering information. So Google may be helping people out in the fact that it frees up some mental RAM and increases their processing speed of other information. Roddy Roediger (a Washington University psychologist) was quoted as saying “Why remember something if I know I can look it up again? In some sense, with Google and other search engines, we can offload some of our memory demands onto machines.”

Why I don’t think the Google study is groundbreaking

For me, this study really isn’t as groundbreaking as the media hyped it up to be, but I think other people may think that it’s pretty cool to learn about. I think it’s good that there are passionate psychologists out there interested in learning about memory and its relationship to technology, but studies like this to me are temporary news hype. Your brain will continue to evolve over time in response to the environmental stimuli that it is presented with. So finding out that Google has changed the way people remember things makes so much intuitive sense that I don’t even think we needed a study like this to let us know.

Our brains will continue to change and adapt…

Although I found the study interesting, I don’t consider it groundbreaking by any means. It just shows that the brain can change and adapt depending on what technology you use or don’t use. I’ll leave the final words regarding this study for the lead researcher Betsy Sparrow: “We’re not thoughtless empty-headed people who don’t have memories anymore but we are becoming particularly adept at remembering where to go find things. And that’s kind of amazing.”

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Schizoid personality disorder (SPD) is something that affects certain individuals on a social level, making them lack interest in doing and participating in social activities with others. Although I haven’t had the chance to write about personality disorders in the past, I figured that I’d share what I know and have learned about them based on my research. Keep in mind that schizoid personality disorder is not the same thing as schizophrenia or schizotypal personality disorder; they are completely different diagnoses so make sure that you get that straight.

What is the definition of Schizoid Personality Disorder?

Since I’m going to try to be as official as possible, I’m going to go by what the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) says regarding this personality disorder. It is located in Axis II, Cluster A if you want to get all technical with the terminology. Anyways, so how can we break down someone that has and is affected by schizoid personality disorder? What is the correct and legitimate definition?

Basically a person with schizoid personality disorder: consistently avoids socializing with others and has a restricted range of emotional expression as well as emotions in social settings. The onset can be at any age, but typically people develop schizoid personality disorder by the time they are an early adult.

Official DSM Criteria for Schizoid Personality Disorder diagnosis:

*Note: Four or more of the following Schizoid personality disorder symptoms must be met for an official diagnosis.

1. Neither desires nor enjoys close relationships, including being part of a family
2. Almost always chooses solitary activities
3. Has little, if any, interest in having sexual experiences with another person
4. Takes pleasure in few, if any, activities
5. Lacks close friends or confidants other than first-degree relatives
6. Appears indifferent to the praise or criticism of others
7. Shows emotional coldness, detachment, or flattened affect

Additional requirements that must be met:

A person cannot be diagnosed with schizoid personality disorder if they are already dealing with a severe mental illness which may mimic or share similar symptoms. In other words, you cannot be diagnosed with schizoid personality disorder during a flare up of schizophrenia, a mood disorder like depression, another psychotic disorder, or a developmental brain disorder.

Your mental health professional must be able to rule out other things that could be causing similar symptoms. That’s why it’s really important to deal with someone that’s an expert so that you don’t end up overlooking any other general medical conditions that may have been left untreated.

Would you know if you had schizoid personality disorder?

Generally after reading the symptoms, most people with the condition aren’t at all ashamed to admit that they fit the symptoms perfectly. In other words, if you know that you have schizoid personality disorder (SPD), you will likely be conscious of it after you read what the symptoms are.

However, that doesn’t mean you should self-diagnose because you don’t want to overlook anything else. Therefore, it is always recommended that you go into a professional psychologist to take the proper personality disorder test to figure out what the underlying problem really could be. Self-diagnosis can be accurate in some cases, but generally professional confirmation is required by a specialist.

Difference between schizoid personality disorder and introversion

After reading the symptoms, you may be wondering what the difference between schizoid personality disorder and introversion is because they both seem to involve less contact with people. The truth is that someone who has schizoid personality disorder desires no social contact whatsoever, while someone who is an “introvert” still desires social contact, they just prefer to “recharge” on their own for awhile. Schizoids don’t want friendships, while introverts still maintain friendships; they are two completely different things.

Difference between schizoid personality disorder and avoidant personality disorder

There is some dispute between schizoid personality disorder and avoidant personality disorder. Avoidant personality disorders generally involve a different set of criteria compared to that of schizoids. The difference between the two is that avoidant personality disorders tend to avoid social interactions because they feel inadequate and are afraid that people are negatively evaluating them.

Most people that know about personality disorders would say that a person cannot be both schizoid and avoidant at the same time; that statement is up for debate though among professionals. I personally think that it would be rare to have a person who has both avoidant personality disorder and schizoid personality disorder – usually people have either one or the other, not a combination of both. If diagnosed with both on a test, that should raise some kind of red flag as to whether: A) The person answered honestly on the test and B) Whether there are other factors that aren’t being taken into account.

How schizoid personality disorder differs from schizophrenia and schizotypal personalities

There is a lot of confusion among the general public anytime there’s something mental health related dealing with the “schizo” prefix to a label. This is a huge problem and I personally wish that the labels wouldn’t have been given such confusing (dumb) names in the first place by the people that discovered them. Anyways, if you are a mental health professional, hopefully you are able to tell the difference between different words that start with “schizo.”

In my personal experience, most people seem to group them all under “schizophrenia.” And to the general public, instead of them understanding the proper definition, they tend to think of schizophrenia as dissociative identity disorder (formerly known as multiple personality disorder). Anyways, I went off on a little tangent there, but I’m sorry, people need to pull their heads out of their asses and get the definitions right before they think they can play doctor.

Do everyone a favor and educate yourself on Schizoid Personality Disorder to raise awareness

Personality disorders differ from mental illnesses like schizophrenia because they deal with personality, which generally cannot be effectively treated through medication or therapy. If you read the definition at the top of the article about schizoid personality disorder, and look at the DSM criteria, you should get an idea of what it is and the general concept.

If you want to know how it differs from schizophrenia, look it up – schizophrenia involves positive (hearing things/seeing things) and negative symptoms (flat emotion); it’s different. Schizotypal personality disorder also has a different symptom set and generally involves odd thinking and unconventional (weird) beliefs.

Schizoid Personality Disorder Treatment and Prognosis

Although some individuals with schizoid personality disorder (SPD) may feel suicidal, the majority do not.  The majority of these people are self-sufficient and independent and just prefer solitary lifestyles.  Think of someone that could survive as a hermit without any social contact for long periods of time.  Most people would go crazy for socialization and crave social contact if they hadn’t talked to anyone for a long period of time, however, people with schizoid personality disorders would be perfectly content without social contact.

If people with Schizoid Personality Disorder want help getting treatment, they have a couple options:

• Antidepressants – Known to help improve the mood and outlook for people with this disorder.  In some cases they are effective, while in others they do not improve the situation.  Generally, other options are advised first unless the person is really depressed.
• Therapy – The right therapist can be very helpful for people with schizoid personality disorder.  However, they need to establish a level of trust with the SPD individual to make progress.  If they cannot establish a trustworthy relationship, it’s going to be tough to make progress.  Therefore, the therapist must have some good experience.
• Socialization – Generally, if a person with Schizoid Personality Disorder wants to improve their situation and live a normal life, they need to recognize their symptoms, become conscious of them, and still make room for socialization.  Socializing is a basic human need to be part of a group and belong; if this need is not met, it can lead to a host of other problems.

Updating the 4 Mind 4 Life Mental Health website

It’s been awhile since I last updated this website, but decided that I’m going to take the direction of the website towards mental health education as well as writing to try to help people’s lives. If you’ve been subscribed for awhile, I really have to apologize and say that I’m really sorry that I haven’t been updating on a regular basis. I’ve really had a lot of personal issues going on in my own life that needed to be addressed so I put this website on the backburner. However, after doing some thinking and soul searching, I’m going to try to help people the best I can with regards to mental health and illness here.

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