Online Trading Addiction


Time for Resolutions

The start of a new year is a time when many look at personal problem behaviors and make resolutions to do something about them. Online trading addiction is a new problem that one needs to consider.

Downfall of a Day Trader is the sad story of how a teacher made a fortune trading online and then lost it and more as he was hooked.

"I went from this state of euphoria where I could have easily retired, to a point back in December when I had to consider selling my home".
The story goes on to discuss how the mild obsession turned into a large problem and how he is dealing with it.

Warning Signs

Do you or someone you know continue to trade stocks and lose money online? Is the financial hole getting deeper and deeper? This could be a case of online-trading addiction. The article Online-Trading Addiction: the Warning Signs goes into detail about the problem.

The article lists the following as warning signs of a possible online-trading addiction:

  • You're a thrill seeker and enjoy the challenge of trading as much as - and maybe even more than - making money.
  • You're a big risk-taker, willing to gamble large sums of money on a few stocks.
  • You invest heavily on margin and are probably overextended on other credit lines.
  • You have unrealistic expectations about a stock's prospects for increasing in value and the general direction of the market.
  • Family members and friends express concern about your trading.
  • You try to erase your losses by taking bigger risks.
If you find yourself on that list, then you should look more into the possibility of a problem behavior.

Resources

Center for On-Line Addiction is a good starting place to learn more about On-Line Addiction. There they have topics like:

  • What is Internet Addiction (IA)?
  • What is Cybersexual Addiction?
  • Do you spend too much time on-line?
  • Who is most at risk to develop IA?
  • Is Cybersex Cheating?
  • How spouses' deal with Cyberaffairs.
  • Kids and Computers - Addiction and Media Violence.
  • How do you Treat Internet Addiction?
  • What are the Legal Ramifications of Internet Addiction?
  • What are the signs of Problem Day Trading?
  • Understanding Addictions to E-Auction, Online Gambling, and Day Trading.
plus much more.

The Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey estimates that 5% of all online investors exhibit the tendencies of a compulsive gambler. They have a special section on its web site devoted to stock trading starting with the "20 questions for online traders" that helps you determine if you have a problem.

The copyright of the article Online Trading Addiction in Investing/Personal Finance is owned by Kirk Lindstrom. Permission to republish Online Trading Addiction in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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