Key insights

• 🔴 Red notifications are deliberately used to grab attention due to psychological association with danger and immediate action
• 🔔 Recapture notifications are designed to make users feel like they've missed out and need to re-engage with the app
• 💰 Social media companies rely on the attention economy and targeted ads for revenue
• 🤯 Tech companies use deep and twisted psychology to keep users addicted to their apps
• 🧠 Dopamine is more about the anticipation of a reward than the actual reward itself
• 🎰 Social media uses variable intermittent rewards to keep users engaged, Similar strategy to slot machines
• 🎲 Slot machines engineering user attention through intelligent algorithms, Offering options to create the illusion of control and encourage bigger risks
• ⏭️ TikTok's user interface is designed to encourage constant scrolling and minimize the effort to engage with content

Q&A

• How can users take control to reduce manipulation by social media companies?

  Users can take control by disabling unnecessary notifications, introducing friction to reduce unintentional usage, and considering using tools like Surfshark VPN for online safety, unlimited devices, and affordable pricing.

• How is the design of apps like TikTok intentionally made to keep users endlessly scrolling?

  The design of apps like TikTok, including infinite scrolling and autoplaying videos, is deliberately made to keep users endlessly engaged, leading to a loss of awareness, a phenomenon known as 'Doom scrolling.'

• How do social media platforms use variable intermittent rewards?

  Social media platforms use variable intermittent rewards similar to the strategy employed by slot machines. These rewards create a sense of unpredictability and can be addictive, leading to increased time spent on the platform.

• What is the role of dopamine in social media addiction?

  Dopamine is not just triggered by good things but is more about the anticipation of a reward. Variable intermittent reward principle used by social media skyrockets dopamine levels, contributing to addiction based on the anticipation of a great reward.

• How do red notifications affect users?

  Red notifications are deliberately used to grab attention due to the psychological association with danger and immediate action. They create a sense of urgency and prompt immediate user engagement.

• What tactics do social media companies use to keep users engaged?

  Social media companies use psychological tactics like red notifications, the fear of missing out, variable intermittent rewards, and intelligent algorithms to manipulate user attention, leading to addiction and constant app use.

• 00:00 Social media companies use psychological tactics like red notifications and the fear of missing out to keep users engaged, leading to addiction and constant app use.
• 02:02 Dopamine is not just triggered by good things, it's more involved in the anticipation of a reward. Variable intermittent reward, used by social media, skyrockets dopamine levels even when the reward is received only half the time.
• 04:00 Social media platforms use variable intermittent rewards to keep users engaged, similar to the strategy employed by slot machines. These rewards create a sense of unpredictability and can be addictive, leading to increased time spent on the platform.
• 06:10 Social media and slot machines use intelligent algorithms to manipulate user attention by offering options that create the illusion of control and promoting content that triggers strong emotions. Both platforms eliminate any stimuli or friction that might prompt users to leave.
• 08:27 The design of apps like TikTok is intentionally made to keep users endlessly scrolling, leading to a loss of awareness. This design, including infinite scrolling and autoplaying videos, has been criticized by individuals like AAR Ruskin, who invented the infinite scroll and has since founded the Center for Humane Technology to address these issues.
• 10:32 Social media companies use manipulative tactics driven by algorithms exploiting human psychology. Take control by disabling unnecessary notifications and introducing friction to reduce unintentional usage. Consider using Surfshark VPN for online safety, unlimited devices, and affordable pricing.