Dopamine Loops: The hidden psychology of why we're addicted to our phones

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MOBILE MASTERY Becoming a 'master' of your device and ensuring it's not the other way around


1  INTRODUCTION

2  AN EXPERIMENT

3  ADDICTION?

4  NEUROCHEMICAL:

THE 5 TRIGGERS OF DOPAMINE LOOPS

5  KEY TAKEAWAYS

@THEWEBPSYCH


1 INTRODUCTION


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THE BOOK

Webs of Influence: The Psychology of Online Persuasion (Pearson, 2012) UK / USA / Korea / China / Japan

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WEB PSYCHOLOGY

The empirical study of how online environments influence our attitudes and behaviours

“ ” @THEWEBPSYCH


WEB PSYCHOLOGY

HCI

neuro- aesthetics

user experience

social psychology

cognitive psychology

neuroscience

cross-cultural psychology

behavioural economics

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IT’S ABOUT CONTEXT

PSYCHOLOGY INDIVIDUAL CULTURAL

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2 AN EXPERIMENT


EXPER MENT

1  WHAT’S THE FIRST THING YOU REACH FOR IN THE MORNING?

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EXPER MENT


2  HOW MANY TIMES AN HOUR DO YOU CHECK YOUR PHONE?

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EXPER MENT



3  HOW LONG CAN YOU GO BEFORE YOU FEEL ANXIOUS AND HAVE TO CHECK YOUR PHONE?

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EXPER MENT



3  HOW LONG CAN YOU GO BEFORE YOU FEEL ANXIOUS AND HAVE TO CHECK YOUR PHONE?

4  IF YOU ACCIDENTALLY LEAVE YOUR PHONE AT HOME, DO YOU PANIC?

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THE PROBLEM


TECH ANXIETY

Being disconnected from technology is surprisingly stressful. There's often a feeling

of missing out, as we worry about what's going on… without our knowledge.

“ ” @THEWEBPSYCH Source: Leon Edwards, Managing Director, Versapack (2013)


TRENDS

62% of smartphone users aged 18-44 reach for their smartphones

immediately on waking up [ @THEWEBPSYCH

] Source: IDC report sponsored by Facebook (2013)


Source: Versapack (2013) @THEWEBPSYCH

28 35 37

41

51

Stressed Not bothered Lack of control Not being included amongst friends

Extreme tech anxiety

Being separated from your device


@THEWEBPSYCH

70

56 48 51

44

Within an hour of getting up

Within an hour of going to sleep

Over the weekend Continuously during vacation

A great deal of anxiety' if you lost

your phone and couldn't replace it for

a week

How often do you check your phone?

Source: Harvard Business School (2013)


THE HACK


TECH HAPPY

Whatever people were doing, whether it was having sex or reading or

shopping, they tended to be happier if they focused on the activity instead of thinking

about something else “ ” @THEWEBPSYCH Source: John Tierney, New York Times (2010)


7 DAY CHALLENGE

1  TURN ON YOUR PHONE AT 11AM

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7 DAY CHALLENGE


2  PRACTICE MINDFULNESS – 10 DEEP BREATHS

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7 DAY CHALLENGE



3  DESIGNATE PHONE-FREE ZONES

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7 DAY CHALLENGE




4  BANISH PHONES AT MEALTIMES

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7 DAY CHALLENGE




4  BANISH PHONES AT MEALTIMES

5  USE AN ALARM CLOCK, PUT YOUR PHONE IN THE

NEXT ROOM

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3 ADDICTION?


DEFINITION OF ADDICTION

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A repetitive habit pattern that increases the risk of disease and/or

associated personal and social problems, often experienced subjectively as

‘‘loss of control’’ “ ” Source: Annual Review of Psychology (1998)


VARIABLE RATIO REINFORCEMENT

We never know when we'll get a satisfying email, so we keep checking, over

and over again, like slot machines – we keep seeking that pleasurable hit

“ ” @THEWEBPSYCH Source: Susan Davis, Web MD (2013)


JUST BAD HABITS?

People aren't addicted to smartphones themselves as much as they are addicted

to "checking habits" that develop with phone use [ ]

@THEWEBPSYCH Source: Personal and Ubiquitous Computing (2012)


TRIGGERS

Certain environmental triggers like being bored or listening to a lecture

can trigger the habits [ ] @THEWEBPSYCH Source: Personal and Ubiquitous Computing (2012)


ADDICTIVE BY DESIGN?

It's an environment of almost constant interruptions and distractions… Human

beings have a deep, primitive desire to know everything that's going on around them

@THEWEBPSYCH “ ” Source: Nicholas Carr (2012)


4 NEUROCHEMICAL


DOPAMINE •  DISCOVERED 1958 BY ARVID CARLSSON AND NILS-AKE HILLARP,

NATIONAL HEART INSTITUTE OF SWEDEN

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•  CRITICAL FOR MOOD, ATTENTION, MOTIVATION, THINKING, MOVING, SLEEPING, SEEKING AND REWARD

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•  CRITICAL FOR MOOD, ATTENTION, MOTIVATION, THINKING, MOVING, SLEEPING, SEEKING AND REWARD

•  CAUSES PLEASURE-SEEKING BEHAVIOUR (THE OPIOID SYSTEM MAKES US FEEL PLEASURE)

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THE PROBLEM THE 5 TRIGGERS OF DOPAMINE LOOPS


1 WANTING VS LIKING

DOPAMINE “WANTING”

TAKE

ACTION

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1 WANTING VS LIKING


OPIOID “LIKING”

TAKE

ACTION

FEEL

SATISFIED

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1 WANTING VS LIKING


OPIOID “LIKING”

FEEL

SATISFIED

@THEWEBPSYCH


BUT

The dopamine system is stronger than the opioid system - you tend to

seek more than you are satisfied [ ] @THEWEBPSYCH


1 WANTING VS LIKING

OPIOID “LIKING”

FEEL

SATISFIED

@THEWEBPSYCH


TAKE

ACTION

INSTANT REWARD


2 ANTICIPATION

The brain shows more activity when you’re anticipating a reward

than when you’re getting one [ ] @THEWEBPSYCH


3 UNPREDICTABLE

Activated when you experience an unpredictable reward – such as a

great email, tweet, ‘like’ or text [ ] @THEWEBPSYCH


4 CUES

[ ] @THEWEBPSYCH

Activated by cues that tell us there’s a reward coming, such as the

specific beep of push notifications or text


5 SMALL IS UNSATISFYING

[

] @THEWEBPSYCH

Stimulated most strongly when the reward is so small that it doesn't fully

satisfy – e.g. 140 characters


THE HACK


THE HACK

@THEWEBPSYCH

1  TURN OFF YOUR PUSH NOTIFICATIONS


THE HACK

@THEWEBPSYCH


2  UNINSTALL TWITTER / INSTAGRAM / FACEBOOK (STREAMS)


THE HACK

@THEWEBPSYCH


2  UNINSTALL TWITTER / INSTAGRAM / FACEBOO (STREAMS)

3  UNINSTALL YOUR EMAIL

(Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars > Gmail > delete)


THE HACK

@THEWEBPSYCH


2  UNINSTALL TWITTER / INSTAGRAM / FACEBOOK (STREAMS)

3  UNINSTALL YOUR EMAIL

(Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars > Gmail > delete)

4  DISABLE SAFARI / GOOGLE CHROME

(Settings > General > Restrictions > Set up passcode)


5 KEY TAKEAWAYS


KEY TAKEAWAYS

1  BE CONSCIOUS: List the situations and emotions that make you want to check your phone. Are you bored / lonely / anxious? What could you do instead to soothe yourself?

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KEY TAKEAWAYS


2  CHOOSE: You’re in control. Turn your notifications off and decide if you want to check your phone.

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KEY TAKEAWAYS


2  CHOOSE: You’re in control. Turn your notifications off and decide if you want to check your phone.

3  SET SOME RULES: List times / situations in which you won’t use your device (e.g. mealtimes, in bed, during play time).

@THEWEBPSYCH


MAKE HEALTHY CHOICES

I don’t use the metaphor of addiction. We’re not going to give it up. We shouldn’t

give it up. It’s more like food, and being on a digital diet. The questions we should ask are,

‘What are the healthy choices?’ “ ” @THEWEBPSYCH Source: NY Times, Sherry Turkle (2012)


RESOURCES & REFERENCES


RESOURCES

1  THE VIRTUAL REVOLUTION bit.ly/virtualrevolution

2  10 ONLINE TOOLS FOR BETTER ATTENTION & FOCUS bit.ly/10focusapps

3  NICHOLAS CARR (BOOK) The Shallows: How the Internet is Changing the Way We Think, Read and Remember

@THEWEBPSYCH


REFERENCES 1  A. Oulasvirta, T. Rattenbury, L. Ma, E. Raita (2012). Habits make smartphone use more pervasive. Personal and Ubiquitous Computing, 16(1), pp. 105-114.

2  Nicholas Carr (2011). The Shallows: How the Internet is Changing the Way We Think, Read and Remember (Atlantic Books).

3  K.C. Berridge and T.E. Robinson (1998). What is the role of dopamine in reward: hedonic impact, reward learning, or incentive salience? Brain Research Reviews, 28, pp.309–369.

4  G. A. Marlatt, J. S. Baer. D. M. Donovan and D. R. Kivlahan (1988). Addictive behaviors: etiology and treatment. Annual Review of Psychology. 39(1), pp. 223-252.

5  Susan Davis, Web MD (2013). Addicted to your smartphone? Here's what to do. http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/addicted-your-smartphone-what-to-do

6  An IDC Research Report, Sponsored By Facebook (2013). Always connected: how smartphones and social keep us engaged. http://www.nu.nl/files/IDC-Facebook%20Always%20Connected%20(1).pdf

7  The Drum (2013). Over half of brits suffer 'extreme tech anxiety' when separated from smartphones. http://www.thedrum.com/news/2013/07/11/over-half-brits-suffer-extreme-tech-anxiety-when-separated-smartphones

8  Leslie Perlow, PhD, the Konosuke Matsushita professor of leadership at the Harvard Business School (2013). In: http://www.webmd.com/balance/guide/addicted-your-smartphone-what-to-do

9  John Tierny, New York Times (2010) When the mind wanders, happiness also strays. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/16/science/16tier.html?_r=1&src=me&ref=homepage

10  Tanya Mohn, New York Times (2012). Silencing the smartphone. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/01/business/some-companies-seek-to-wean-employees-from-their-smartphones.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

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THANK YOU!

@TheWebPsych

Dopamine Loops: The hidden psychology of why we're addicted to our phones

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Transcript of Dopamine Loops: The hidden psychology of why we're addicted to our phones