Step Inside A Chinese Boot Camp For Teens Who Are Addicted To The Internet [PHOTOS]
China was one of the first countries to label "internet addiction" as a clinical disorder deserving psychological treatment. Here, a man plays a game at a Beijing Internet cafe.
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Scientists at Beijing's Daxing Internet Addiction Treatment Center scan an Internet addict's brain for research purposes. Some psychologists say that the competitive pressures of life in a 1.3 billion-person country could be a reason many Chinese teens retreat to the Internet.
A female instructor and a former soldier escort a young girl to Qide Education Center, an Internet addiction treatment facility in Beijing. There are as many as 250 secretive military-style camps like Qide in China.
At Qide, two instructors speak through a small window in a door.
Treatment centers like Qide use military tactics to teach discipline to young addicts. "Internet-addicted children are in very poor physical condition," Xing Liming, an official at Qide, said to Reuters. "Their obsession with the Internet has harmed their health, and they end up losing their ability to participate in a normal life."
Instructors work to get teens back in top shape after hours spent in front of the computer screen.
A former military instructor teaches students close-order drills at Qide. Most of the teenagers are there at the request of their parents.
The students are punished as a group if they don't follow the rules.
In addition to the physical training, students take courses that run between four and eight months. In this class on traditional Chinese ethics, students learn to bow like Confucius.
Like the drill segments, the academic courses are taught by ex-soldiers.
The education program also cover topics like music and Chinese lion dancing.
A young student stands outside the door to his dorm at Qide.
Students at Qide are also taught everyday tasks like cleaning, cooking, and other important skills that may have been neglected because of hours spent on the Internet. "Education and living in a military environment makes them more disciplined and restores their ability to live a normal life," Xing said to Reuters. "The training improves their physical strength and helps to develop good living habits.”
A pair of teenage boys learns how to prepare vegetables to be eaten.
And they take turns making meals for the group.
Students are expected to keep their dorms clean at all times.
And ex-military instructors often lecture them on the importance of discipline.
Counseling with a psychologist is another important aspect of the boot camp experience.
One teenager, Wang, has been diagnosed with "Internet Addiction Disorder." He once played online shooting games for three days straight in what he says was a retreat from pressure from his parents. "My parents wanted me to study at home all day, and I was not allowed to play outside," he said to Reuters. "As I became addicted to the game, my school grades tumbled. But I gained another feeling of achievement by advancing to the next level in the game."
Since China classifies Internet addiction as a clinical disorder, teens who suffer from the condition and its side effects are eligible to receive medication as treatment.
A nurse at Qide distributes medications to teens diagnosed with Internet addiction and depression.
A student who has completed a six-month course salutes his classmates as he leaves Qide.
His classmates wave goodbye as he leaves.
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