This blog post will shine light on the terrible status quo we now face in regard to technology, specifically mobile phones and social media. First there will be an overview of the state of affairs in technology (and hence our) land. Subsequently, a more ideal state will be suggested and described, including macro and micro steps to make this happen.
Recently a new documentary was launched called The Social Dilemma. Here it was elucidated how big tech firms are willfully and firmly misleading and manipulating their users. For the most part, this happens completely unbeknownst to them. Despite the revelations of The Social Dilemma, it did not seem to have sparked much debate about the role and clout of big tech and social media in society. The prime goal for such firms is to maximise revenue, which is understandable given the capitalist system they reside in. The ideal way of maximising revenue is by maximising our time-on-sight, that is the time we spent on a particular app or mobile phone. One explanation for maximising revenue by maximising time-on-sight is because then more data can be collected about the user, which can be sold: the more data collected, the more can be sold, the more revenue. How do such firms aim to maximise our time-on-sight? Consider the following two examples:
- By creating phones and developing applications that work as slot machines (Harris, 2017; TED, 2016). For example, notice that when you open Facebook there is a little time delay to see the newsfeed; this is delaying the dopamine reward, thereby making the application more addictive (Harris, 2017).
- By using well-documented and extensively researched principles of persuasion as a means to keep our attention where they want it to be (Harris, 2017). Consider for example the principle of reciprocity (Cialdini, 2007), which states that we feel more inclined to return favours if have received them from others. For example, consider the Snapchat streak that its users accumulate. We might not think this consciously but unconsciously such streaks trigger reciprocity (Harris, 2017), thereby increasing our time-on-sight.
On a macro level, it seems that a radical paradigm shift is needed in order for the aforementioned situation to change in any significant way. For example by altering the way the big firms like Facebook and Samsung design their phones and applications (TED, 2016). Frankly, it seems unrealistic to expect any of such changes soon hence it falls to us to modify our relationship to our phones and applications. In addition to having an awareness of the addictive potential of both, we can consciously decide to stick one day per week without our phones. We can encourage our friends at gatherings, dinners, and parties to refrain from using smartphones; to truly be connected to each other without being connected to the internet.
References
Cialdini, R. B. (2007). Influence : the psychology of persuasion. Collins.
Harris, S. (2017, April 14). Making Sense Podcast #71 — What is Technology Doing to Us? Sam Harris. https://samharris.org/podcasts/71-technology-us/
TED. (2016). How better tech could protect us from distraction | Tristan Harris. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D55ctBYF3AY
