Phones are very similar in this aspect because there is an audible ring when you receive a notification on your phone and there is a surprise element of not knowing what notification we get. This suspense causes us to have the anxiety to check our phones, and if there is a notification that makes us happy we release small amounts of dopamine. Over time, our mind becomes accustomed to the dopamine releases and requires more dopamine to be happy. This is where the addiction comes from because we need more time on our phones to get the same happiness that we used with less time on our phones. Therefore, the more we use our phones the more addicting and the harder it becomes to put them down. Instead of falling into this loophole what do you guys think are effective solutions to not go on your phones as much?
Thursday, January 9, 2020
Nigohosian 6: Constant Addiction
Recently as I was doing homework, I caught a bright flash in the corner of my eye. It was the familiar sight of getting a notification on my phone. It was at that moment when I stopped my work and checked my phone. Well, you would think that soon after I checked my phone I would put it down and get back to my work, but that is an incorrect assumption. I always wondered what makes phones so hard to put down, and in reality its because everything on them is designed to be addicting. Whether it’s the games you play or social media visit frequently, they have all been created to keep you on them for as long as possible. After researching a little bit of information about how apps are so addicting is because of the release of dopamine, and phones are specifically designed to elicit that release of dopamine. For example, slot machines are designed to cause our brains to release dopamine with the element of surprise and the noise created by the machines when pulling the slot.
Phones are very similar in this aspect because there is an audible ring when you receive a notification on your phone and there is a surprise element of not knowing what notification we get. This suspense causes us to have the anxiety to check our phones, and if there is a notification that makes us happy we release small amounts of dopamine. Over time, our mind becomes accustomed to the dopamine releases and requires more dopamine to be happy. This is where the addiction comes from because we need more time on our phones to get the same happiness that we used with less time on our phones. Therefore, the more we use our phones the more addicting and the harder it becomes to put them down. Instead of falling into this loophole what do you guys think are effective solutions to not go on your phones as much?
Phones are very similar in this aspect because there is an audible ring when you receive a notification on your phone and there is a surprise element of not knowing what notification we get. This suspense causes us to have the anxiety to check our phones, and if there is a notification that makes us happy we release small amounts of dopamine. Over time, our mind becomes accustomed to the dopamine releases and requires more dopamine to be happy. This is where the addiction comes from because we need more time on our phones to get the same happiness that we used with less time on our phones. Therefore, the more we use our phones the more addicting and the harder it becomes to put them down. Instead of falling into this loophole what do you guys think are effective solutions to not go on your phones as much?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
This is pretty frightening to read about. People have become very connected to their phones, but I did not know that there was any scientific reasoning behind this. People often seem to fidget or be on edge when they do not have their phones around them, but I always thought this was more of a societal thing then it was a scientific one. That being said, the fact that phone use affects the chemicals in the brain came as a disturbing surprise. I think that the best way to avoid becoming addicted to your phone is just to spend more time doing other things. I think that if one does this, being away from a phone will become easier as time goes on.
ReplyDeleteI always knew that phones were addictive, but it's very troubling to think that they were designed to be that way. So many people have ruined their lives by being too attached to their phones and neglecting what's right in front of them, and the fact that the phone's addictive properties were no accident is a bitter pill to swallow considering this. Effective solutions I can think of right now would be to make a schedule, i.e. allot certain times to certain activities. A simpler way to put it would be to just limit your time on the phone for say, 1-2- hours per day.
ReplyDelete