OBSESSIVE ONLINE TRADING – Do you watch your stocks repeatedly? Sometimes spending hours just looking at the tickers run across your computer screen? Do you stay up at night strategizing your next online purchase? While online trading is an expedient means to monitor the stock market and conduct one's own online business transactions, it can turn into an addiction quite easily. One gentleman estimated that he spent nearly 16 hours a day between monitoring his investments and researching new stock options. As a result, his work suffered and his wife constantly complained about the amount of time he spent at the computer. While men are more likely to become hooked on online trading, women are gradually gaining momentum because of the ease of online trading. Obsessive online trading has already been reported in major financial and business magazines and this new craze doesn't seem to be letting up as new sites are rapidly emerging.
How can you tell if you suffer from a Net Compulsion? Here are Eight Warning Signs: (Adapted DSM-IV criteria for Pathological Gambling)
Needs to gamble, trade, or buy with increasing amounts of money in order to achieve the desired excitement.
Is preoccupied with the gambling, trading, or buying.
Lies to family members, therapist, or others to conceal extent of gambling, trading, or buying.
Is restless or irritable when attempting to cut down or stop the behavior.
Has repeated unsuccessful efforts to control, cut back, or stop the behavior.
Uses the behavior as a way of escaping from problems or relieve feelings of helplessness, guilt, anxiety, or depression.
Has jeopardized or lost significant relationship, job, or educational or career opportunity because of the behavior.
Has committed illegal acts such as forgery, fraud, theft, or embezzlement to finance online activities.
netaddiction.com
QUESTIONS FOR ONLINE TRADERS
Do you have specific investment goals?
Are you investing money in the market that you can't afford to lose?
Are you risking more money than you intended to?
Are you lying to your significant other regarding your investments?
Are you risking retirement savings to try to get back your losses?
Has anyone told you that you spend too much time online?
Is the way you are investing affecting other areas of your life (relationships, vocation pursuits, etc)?
Are you investing frequently (day-trading) for the excitement and the way it makes you feel?
Are you becoming secretive about your online trading?
Do you feel sad or depressed when you are not trading in the market?
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