Social Media Addiction Bares Similarities to Gambling & Drugs, Experts Warn
The addictive nature of gambling is widely known; it is a
well-documented struggle for many and one that can ultimately have a drastic and
disastrous effect on the livelihood and wellbeing of the sufferer. Gambling is
not the only pastime that can progress into a damaging addiction however, with
experts now frequently warning that if utilised incorrectly, social media can
become a similar burden.
Now experts are warning that social media addiction bares
more similarity to an ingrained dependency on gambling than previously known,
with many prominent platforms in fact using the exact same methodology to keep
their users hooked.
In a recent conversation with The Guardian, MIT
anthropologist Natasha Schüll - author of the widely-acclaimed exploration into
the psychology of gambling 'Addiction by Design', published in 2014 - said, “Facebook, Twitter and other
companies use methods similar to the gambling industry to keep users on their
sites. In the online economy, revenue is a function of continuous consumer
attention – which is measured in clicks and time spent.”
“If you disengage, you get peppered with little messages or
bonus offers to get your attention and pull you back in,” continued Schüll. “We
have to start recognising the costs of time spent on social media. It’s not
just a game – it affects us financially, physically and emotionally.”
Ms Schüll is far from the only individual to hold this
sentiment. Dr Mark Griffiths, Professor of Behavioural Addiction and Director
of Nottingham Trent University’s International Gaming Research Unit, compares
the methodology to that employed by slot machines. He states, “The rewards are
what psychologists refer to as variable reinforcement schedules and is the key
to social media users repeatedly checking their screens. Social media sites are
chock-a-block with unpredictable rewards. They are trying to grab users’
attentions ... to make social media users create a routine and habitually check
their screens.”
Professor Daniel Kruger, an expert in human behaviour at the
University of Michigan, offers a rather stark summary, “Phantom calls and
notifications are linked to our psychological craving for such signals. These
social media messages can activate the same brain mechanisms as cocaine and
this is just one of the ways to identify those mechanisms because our minds are
a physiological product of our brain.
“There are whole departments trying to design their systems
to be as addictive as possible. They want you to be permanently online and by
bombarding you with messages and stimuli try to redirect your attention back to
their app or webpage.”
Sam
is an aspiring novelist with a passion for fantasy and crime thrillers.
Currently working as Editor of Social Songbird, he hopes to one day drop that
'aspiring' prefix. Follow him @Songbird_Sam
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Social Media Addiction Bares Similarities to Gambling & Drugs, Experts Warn
Reviewed by Unknown
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Wednesday, May 09, 2018
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Reviewed by Unknown
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Wednesday, May 09, 2018
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Unknown
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