Virtually You: The Dangerous Powers of the E-Personality by Elias Aboujaoude, MD

[Storyteller.]

Virtually You: The Dangerous Powers of the E-Personality by Elias Aboujaoude, MD
By Robin (PSY)

There are many books that discuss the dangers of an "internet addiction," which can occur when people fall victim to obsessions over online video games, compulsive shopping, and pathological gambling, among other things. Society as a whole understands that spending too much time on the internet can have a variety of consequences, including loss of sleep or insomnia, increased distractibility or difficulty focusing on every day tasks, and isolation from "real-life" family members and friends.

Virtually You: The Dangerous Powers of the E-Personality offers a new perspective: how can our personalities be affected by our use of the internet? Elias Aboujaoude, MD, is a psychiatrist and author from Stanford University who has worked with individuals struggling with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and behavioral addictions. Dr. Aboujaoude doesn't use this book to lecture readers on how the internet is "bad", and in fact, he acknowledges that the internet can enhance our well-being in many ways. The danger lies in how our "e-personality" canbegin to negatively affect our lives, both "virtual" and "real."

What is the "e-personality"? It is essentially how we choose to present ourselves to other people online. A teenager with an introverted personality in "real life" may project an extroverted "e-personality." Many people feel empowered by the internet and can express themselves in ways they wouldn't necessarily be able to in "real life"; however, as the gap between the "real-life" personality and the "e-personality" widens, a person may begin to experience confusion ("Why am I not able to make friends at school when I can make friends so easily online?"), pain ("I'm not as popular in 'real life' as I am on this website"), and disorientation ("My online goals are more important than my 'real-life' goals"). The book uses real-world examples and data to illustrate how, when unchecked, the "e-personality" can do more harm than good in a person's life by fostering delusions of grandeur, narcissism, aggression, impulsivity, addictive behaviors, and more.

I found Virtually You: The Dangerous Powers of the E-Personality to be an engaging book. The author ensured the book wasn't filled with terms that only a mental health professional would understand, and I was able to read through this book very quickly. The case studies were interesting, and while I didn't always relate to the extreme stories of former patients seen by Dr. Aboujaoude, I was encouraged to look at my own life and explore how my "e-personality" affects my self-esteem and relationships with other people. I learned a great deal about myself, and I believe other readers who spend an increasing amount of time online can learn from this book as well.