GoonThe Dark Side of Social Media: How Tech Companies Manipulate Your Psychology
Have you ever noticed how social media apps like Instagram and TikTok design their notification systems to keep you hooked? It's no coincidence that the notification symbols are always red, even though it's not a common color used within the apps themselves. This is a deliberate decision based on psychological studies that show people respond quicker to red than any other color because we associate it with danger, which requires immediate action.
When you come back from a holiday and haven't been using your phone as much, you're suddenly bombarded with notifications from apps that you've never even interacted with. These are called "recapture notifications" designed to make you feel like you've missed out on so much that you need to get right back into a new session as fast as possible.
The Psychology of Addiction
The attention economy is the business model of social media companies. They get more attention, they show more targeted ads, and they get more money. But what's the cost? Our addiction to social media is not just about dopamine; it's about the anticipation of a reward. Research has shown that dopamine levels spike more when the light comes on, indicating a potential reward, than when the reward is actually received. This is why we can't stop scrolling; our brains are wired to anticipate the next reward.
The Deliberate Design of Social Media
Social media companies know exactly what they're doing. They've designed their apps to be highly engaging, using infinite scroll, autoplay, and personalized algorithms to keep you hooked. They've also eliminated natural points of friction, like the need to click through to the next page, to make it easier to mindlessly scroll.
The Whistleblowers
There are people who have come forward to expose the dark side of social media. AAR Ruskin, the inventor of the infinite scroll, has publicly apologized for his invention and now runs the Center for Humane Technology. Tristan Harris, a former Google ethicist, has also spoken out against the persuasive technology lab at Google.
Take Back Control
It's time to take back control of our own psychology. We can disable notifications that don't serve us, turn off autoplay, and use features like scheduled summaries to reduce our unintentional usage time. By introducing a little friction into our social media habits, we can break free from the manipulation of tech companies and use social media on our own terms.
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