In chapter 27 of A Deadly Wandering, technology is compared to food. Technology is a necessity for cultural and social lives, however, just like food, technology (mainly interactive media) in large amounts can be unhealthy. There is a joyful feeling one gets when receiving text messages and likes from peers on social media sites. This euphoric feeling we experience is due to a chemical reaction in the brain. Each time we receive a text message or a notification from our phone dopamine is released into our brain. Dopamine is a chemical that plays a major role in a reward-motivated behavior. Many addictive drugs increase levels of dopamine in our brain as well. This increased level of dopamine in brains may be the reason why certain drugs are addictive. In the same sense, if we receive shots of dopamine from interactive media, we may also become addicted to it. When we become accustomed to receiving shots of dopamine frequently we may lose the ability to be satisfied for long periods of time without it. Because we received dopamine from interactive media on our phones, we learn that social media is what we do when we want more dopamine. This frequent desire for dopamine is destructive to our attention span because we are not content focusing on something while not receiving dopamine. I find this true to my life as well. Often times when I am trying to direct my attention towards homework, I begin to get the urge to check my phone for messages or notifications. When I do check my phone, I often stay on it for much longer than I had intended. I find it difficult to focus on other aspects of my life for long periods of time without frequently being distracted with my social media. This constant distraction often causes me to make unnoticed mistakes on the other thing I am trying to focus on. This is because I lack the ability to multi task. Because we crave our phones so frequently, our attention span has shortened becoming less than a goldfish’s.
Our Digital Planet