Disordered Digital Consumption

Only about 1% of the population has been diagnosed with an eating disorder, but many more of us can exhibit “disordered eating.” Similarly, very few of us are diagnosed with full-blown digital addiction, but most of us show signs of “disordered digital consumption.” (This is, by the way, a term I just made up.)

In my mind, “disordered digital consumption” includes all the digital behaviors that we know aren’t quite good for us. Here are some examples:

  • Checking your phone last thing before you fall asleep
  • Checking your phone first thing when you wake up
  • Judging your worth/popularity/relevance from social media ‘likes’
  • Looking at all your favorite websites, only to feel empty and unmotivated at the end, wishing there was fresh content to look at
  • Browsing until the last page of Reddit’s front page
  • Swiping to the end of your options on a (seemingly) unlimited dating app
  • Feeling naked/vulnerable when you leave the house without your phone
  • Closing an app or browser out of boredom, only to reopen it 10 seconds later
  • Hearing your phone buzz with a notification and feeling uncomfortable until you check it
  • Not wanting to go to the bathroom without the company of your phone
  • Texting while driving, biking, or walking
  • Checking your phone during conversations with humans IRL

Maybe this is normal now. And maybe I’m a luddite for calling it out. But maybe (just maybe) we could feel a little happier and healthier if we consumed technology differently.

The Time Well Spent (TWS) nonprofit agrees and it suggests some small behavioral changes. For instance, only allow notifications from people (not machines), make distracting apps harder to find on your phone, and sleep with your phone outside the bedroom.

TWS also suggests you “download apps and extensions that can help you live without distraction”:

Now, here’s where I disagree.

In my opinion, using an app to decrease your technology use is like using a diet pill to decrease your appetite. Your appetite is there for a reason: maybe you haven’t gotten enough nutrition today, maybe you have a thyroid issue, or maybe you’re just tired and dehydrated. Your appetite is an important signal. By taking a diet pill, you’re muting this signal without addressing the underlying issue or need. (I’m sad to say, diet pills are an all too common tool for people with eating disorders or disordered eating.)

Similarly, apps like Freedom or Rescue Time, which monitor and block other apps, are just a short term fix for a long term problem. Sure, if you need to turn in a paper tomorrow, but can’t get off Facebook, then these apps might help. But are they addressing the underlying reason we go on social media? Are they fostering skills to help us feel more satisfied offline? Are they helping us cultivate a deeper understanding of our human needs and societal forces?

Maybe this is too much to ask of an app. It’s certainly too much to ask of a diet pill.

But, then again, that’s why I don’t take diet pills. They’re not a solution.

If we want to use technology differently, a few small tools — especially technological ones — won’t do the trick. We need to understand the context of our digital environment. Why are our digital appetites so large? Who benefits from it? Who supports it? Just as talented researchers and documentarians have revealed unfortunate truths about the food industry, we need to reveal unfortunately truths within our own industry — the tech industry.

My question to you is: do you think we’re building apps that will help, not harm, our consumers? And, if not, why do we do it?

Header image by Diego Naive from Noun Project




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