The internet, however, has a dark side too, and there’s no denying or avoiding it.  From internet gambling, to social media addiction, cyberbullying, it’s a never ending rollercoaster of dangerous and harmful pitfalls.

A team of European researchers have planned to delve into the psychological harms that the internet can cause, and how we may be able to help the victims that get hurt by it.

The researchers recently announced that they’ve created a new group, entitled the European Problematic Use of the Internet Research Network. Their goal is to create a community that can better understand the psychological problems related to the internet.

Although it’s harder to find someone that doesn’t use the internet that someone that does, there is still very little information on the issue of mental health problems caused by the internet.

Existing research exists only for very specific things, such as specific regions, behaviors or populations.  The researchers hope that their work will touch on the bigger picture.

The European union has provided nearly $600,000 of funding to help the researchers achieve their goal, including everything from looking into the role that genetics may play into the problem.

Researchers can now use the network in a wide variety of ways, and can access resources that could assist in their search, and then in turn be able to share what they’ve discovered about various problem behaviors, such as addictions and compulsions on the internet.

And then of course, aim to prevent it.