Why your phone is making you sad

Summary

This video delves into the science behind our phone addiction, explaining how smartphones trigger dopamine release, leading to compulsive behavior and potential mental health issues like depression and anxiety. It explores the impact of constant digital stimulation on our attention spans and offers three evidence-based strategies to curb phone usage: chronological binding, physical binding, and categorical binding, emphasizing the importance of self-regulation in our tech-driven lives.

Takeaways

• 📱 Smartphones have drastically increased in use, with 91% of adults accessing the internet from their phones, compared to just 20% 15 years ago.
• 🕒 The average adult now spends 11 hours per day interacting with media, with a significant portion of this time on their phones.
• 🔒 71% of people never turn off their phones, indicating a high level of dependency on these devices.
• 🤳 31% of individuals admit to not being able to control their phone use, suggesting a compulsive behavior pattern.
• 👨‍👧 Parents are not immune to this trend, with 17.3% spending more time on their phones than with their children.
• 🧠 Our brains are not adapted to handle the constant stimulation from devices, which can lead to negative psychological effects.
• 💊 Dopamine, the 'feel-good' neurotransmitter, plays a crucial role in motivation and reward, and smartphones can artificially stimulate its release.
• 📊 High dopamine release from activities like eating chocolate or sex can be mimicked by the instant gratification provided by smartphones.
• 🔄 The constant dopamine hits from phones can lead to a decrease in the excitement of everyday life and an increase in malaise or depression.
• 📉 Studies have shown that increased phone use is linked to a decrease in attention spans and an inability to delay gratification.
• 🚫 The addictive nature of phones is being recognized, with questions about cravings, mood impact, tolerance, withdrawal, and relapse indicating potential phone addiction.
• 🛠️ There are strategies to combat phone addiction, such as chronological binding, physical binding, and categorical binding, which aim to rewire our brains and regain control over phone use.

Q & A

What was the percentage of people accessing the internet from their phone 15 years ago?

Fifteen years ago, only 20 percent of people accessed the internet from their phone.

What percentage of adults now access the internet from their phone?

Now, it's up to 91 percent of adults who access the internet from their phone.

How many hours per day do adults spend interacting with media?

Adults spend 11 hours per day interacting with media.

What percentage of people never turn off their phone?

71 percent of people never turn off their phone.

What percentage of people admit to not being able to control their phone use?

31 percent of people admit to not being able to control their phone use.

What percentage of parents spend more time on their phone than with their children?

17.3 percent of parents spend more time on their phone than with their children.

What is the role of dopamine in motivation and addiction?

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that plays a major role in motivating behavior and is involved in the reward system of the brain, which can lead to addiction when constantly stimulated, as with smartphone use.

How does smartphone use affect dopamine pathways in the brain?

Smartphone use strengthens the mesocortical, mesolimbic, and nigrostriatal pathways in the brain through a process called long-term potentiation, as these pathways are activated when anticipating and experiencing rewards.

What impact does constant dopamine release from smartphone use have on our daily life?

Constant dopamine release from smartphone use can make the novel aspects of our daily life less exciting and lead to a state of malaise, depression, and decreased attention spans.

How does the pursuit of constant pleasure from smartphone use affect our ability to delay gratification?

The pursuit of constant pleasure can lead to anhedonia, the inability to feel pleasure of any kind, and make it harder for us to focus and delay gratification.

What are the potential negative effects of high levels of screen interaction on young people?

Young people who spend seven hours or more a day interacting with screens are twice as likely to be diagnosed with depression or anxiety than those who use screens more moderately.

What are the three main tips to decrease phone use and gain back control of your life?

The three main tips are chronological binding (restricting phone use to narrow units of time), physical binding (making it harder to access certain apps or the phone itself), and categorical binding (making the phone less stimulating and meaningful).

How can the concept of neuroplasticity be applied to decrease phone addiction?

Neuroplasticity allows us to rewire our brains; by applying the tips mentioned, we can change our brain pathways and reduce phone addiction.

What are some physical binding techniques mentioned to reduce phone use?

Some physical binding techniques include logging out of trigger apps and giving your password to a friend, turning off the phone at night and placing it in a drawer, and having deviceless meals with family or roommates.

How can categorical binding help in reducing phone use?

Categorical binding involves making the phone less appealing by using it only for essential tasks like texting and emails, putting it on grayscale mode, and deleting unnecessary or time-wasting apps.

What is the potential impact of smartphone use on our bodies according to the script?

The script suggests that smartphone use could be causing physical changes such as hunching and nearsightedness.