Do you often catch yourself staring at your phone hoping that some notification will pop up giving you an excuse to get on the phone? Have you ever looked up in a crowded room and seen how many people are staring at screens? What about when you go to a social event, are people actually living in the moment, or are their phones out recording, showing proof of what they are getting to experience?
Do you ever think, “Maybe I should just put the phone down?”
We live in a world full of technology, everyone seems to know everything, and when technology is not right at our fingertips we often have freakouts and withdrawals. The addiction to technology is so bad that it's really not even considered an addiction anymore because it has become so normal.
How Over-Consumption of Technology Affects Our Everyday Lives
The overconsumption of technology is very negative when it comes to how it affects us in both the short-term and long-term aspects of life. For instance the “hunchback” that people have started to form because of continuously looking down at phones or computers. According to the article “The Negative Effects of Too Much Technology” by Morning Coach, people experience health problems, lack of productivity, relationship issues, and privacy risks.
The overconsumption of technology can lead to many health issues. A big one is causing a lack of sleep. Blue light from the screens can cause major issues for people's sleep schedules and can often keep people up at night. They often recommend not getting on your phone an hour before bed, that way your eyes can start actually relaxing.
People also always feel like they need to be in the constant know of what is happening around them. Therefore they are continuously checking their phones to see whether or not they have notifications. (Sometimes when my phone is in my pocket it feels like there is a buzz so I will pull it out to look and nothing will be there and I’ve somehow imagined feeling a buzz.) Continuously checking your phone can distract you from everyday things and therefore affect the productivity of other activities in other aspects of life. If someone is continuously looking at technology they forget about homework, work, family, friends, and pets. (My parents like to tell me to live my life and not the life of others.)
Technology has given many new forms and options to communicate with people, however, according to the article it should not replace our face-to-face in-person communication. People need human interaction to continue to be sane, even those who are introverted need social outings every now and then. When you are able to constantly keep in contact with people through technology, (which is amazing, especially for long-distance situations) we can often forget to actually get together in person and spend real quality time with a person. At what point are we all going to become like Wall-E and communicate only from a chair and through a screen?
Technology is vast and when you are constantly on it, you can open yourself up to lots of security and privacy risks. Digital footprints are a big thing and can be a problem if you are looking at the wrong stuff. Technology’s ability to track people and everything people look up and research could have both negative and positive repercussions. They could be really negative if you are not looking at stuff you should be looking at and could potentially cause problems for you in the future with jobs and other relationships.
Social Media Algorithms Role in Over Consumption
Social media is a big part of how much technology is used daily. The social media we use daily have specific algorithms that encourage people to continuously scroll instead of doing other things.
Have you ever been scrolling on Tik Tok and thought “How did they know I liked this?” Tik Tok has mastered the continuous scroll, especially since the For You Page is specific to each user. The For You Page collects data on videos you like and proceeds to show you more and more. Even when you tell yourself only five more videos, you will get to that sixth video, and it's something “you absolutely have to see and can not look away” because it is one of your interests that Tik Tok knows you will want to learn or see more of.
According to the article “How Tik Tok Reads your Mind” by Ben Smith, a document explaining the Tik Tok algorithm was released. The main goals of the algorithm are “user value,” “long-term user value,” “creator value,” and “platform value.” It gives users the chance to create what they want and watch what they want or what the app thinks they want.
The app closely keeps track of users' “retention” and “time spent” on the app. This allows the app to keep showing you what you want to see in the hopes that you will keep continuously scrolling and staying on the app.
Instagram has also started to adopt the same algorithm when someone likes a certain photo with a specific theme they start to show more posts with that similar theme. (My love for Formula One started with me liking one video on Tik Tok, and after that, I continued to get more and more videos about it, specifically drivers. From that point on I became obsessed and now Tik Tok, Instagram, X, and Threads are always full of Formula One related posts.)
How do you limit your time on social media when the algorithms are working overtime to keep you on the app? Users can utilize the iPhone time limit settings. They can create a time limit for apps under the settings that keep track of how much time you are using a certain app and then pop up saying the time limit for the day has been reached. Users can either ignore for one minute, 15 minutes, or the rest of the day. Even if users choose to ignore for 15 minutes it still gives them an idea of how long they’ve been on it and could make them choose to change tasks and put the phone down.
Is There A Solution?
The constant use of technology is very relevant in day-to-day life, even if you do not want it to be or try to take a break from it. We have to use our phones to keep in touch with people throughout the day. While working you are usually using some form of technology whether that’s being on a computer or answering phone calls. Ever since COVID, schools have transferred almost all of the work you do to the computer, and even the younger generations in school have become more and more reliant on using technology for school. Is there any way to get away from this?
The honest answer is no. We as a people have become so reliant on technology, that unless there is some crazy phenomenon that causes technology to disappear, we will only grow to use it and rely on it more and more. However, when you are not at work, school, or having to stay in touch with someone, there are other options and substitutes for technology available.
Activities that Do Not Involve Technology (Metrokids)
Walking/Running Outside
Reading a physical book
Play with animals
Go on a picnic
Hanging out with friends (you can do stuff that does not involve phones)
Do a Puzzle
Play board games
Participate in sports
Side Effects or Signs of Over-Consumption of Technology
According to Northwestern Medicine on Technology Overuse and Consumption
Increase Use
Inability to stop
Withdrawal Symptoms
Lost Sense of Time
Preoccupation
Escapism
Lying
Risky Behavior
Health Issues (Mental and Physical)
References
Morning Coach. (2022, December). The negative effects of too much technology. MorningCoach Personal Coaching System. https://www.morningcoach.com/blog/the-negative-effects-of-too-much-technology
Northwestern Medicine. (2023). Technology Overuse and Addiction. https://www.nm.org/conditions-and-care-areas/behavioral-health/technology-overuse-and-addiction
Smith, B. (2021, December 6). How Tiktok Reads Your Mind. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/05/business/media/tiktok-algorithm.html
Staff, M. (2016, September 15). 50 things to do without technology. Metrokids. https://www.metrokids.com/50-things-to-do-without-technology/
Great article, I think people are spending way too much time on social media. Social media is consuming so many people's time. People need to quit wasting their lives on their phones.
It seems paradoxical (and hypocritical) to say this given that we’re in a writing for the web course, but I genuinely believe that the world would be better off in a world with less technology - especially without the internet. For all the good that modern luxuries have afforded us, they’ve advanced so quickly that we hardly have the time to analyze their effects before we’re knee deep in new complexes, adding on to a seemingly endless pile of things that won’t be fully understood until it’s too late.
The link between technology and human advancement is a really interesting thing to look at. Theres a-lot of different factors that come into play when examining technology in our daily lives. I like many people also spend, but i've been trying to get better about finding ways and time to unplug.
I'm really glad there are people studying this and writing about it these days, because it's embarrassing how long it took me to realize how much time I was spending online instead of other things. These days I have a timer on my phone that will shut me out of an app if I spend too much time on it in one day.
Not the Wall-E reference 😥 I appreciate your inclusion of algorithms and data tracking as part of the conversation on overconsumption. We're often so quick to blame users, but it's not a black-and-white issue!