Irresistible

One study shows that in conservative states where open expressions of sexuality are frowned upon, pornography consumption and unprotected sex are more common. Another study has shown that those who are allowed to express their fears or feelings are less likely to project those fears or feelings onto others. One conclusion from such studies is that, contrary to popular belief, those who exercise will-power might be more likely to relapse into addictive behaviors than those who remove themselves from environments where they are tempted altogether.

One reason that abstinence is rarely a solution to breaking an addictive habit is that trying to avoid thinking about something results in unfocused thinking. In order to effectively break a habit, a person must replace that habit with something positive and concrete to focus on. In the case of the habit of nail-biting, for example, it is effective to replace the action of biting with the action of squeezing a stress ball. In the case of smartphone addiction, it can be effective to replace an actual smartphone with a decoy so that a person still has something to do with their hands. It can also be effective to analyze what need the habit is addressing, and find other behaviors that address that need.

New habits can take weeks or months to form, depending on the person. One helpful tool in forming new habits can be to use empowering language when deciding not to do something. Instead of saying “I can’t” go online, one might say “I don’t” go online, indicating that the person is actively choosing to stay away from their bad habit (273). Perhaps the most powerful tool in overcoming addiction is to reshape one’s environment so that old temptations are no longer near at hand. In this technique, a person might intentionally keep their smartphone far away from them in order not to be constantly tempted by it. One study shows that proximity might lead to friendship more reliably than sharing a belief or value system with a person. This shows just how influential one’s environment can be in shaping behavior.

One office in Holland restricts access to computers after six in order to limit employees’ ability to work. A certain app is designed to donate money to a cause you don’t support every time you press the snooze button to get you to avoid snoozing altogether. Pavlok is a device one wears that delivers a shock whenever one engages in a behavior or habit they are trying to break. Similarly, MOTI is a device that tracks one’s behavior and provides notifications to either encourage or discourage a certain behavior. Such tools can be incorporated into one’s environment in order to alter one’s habits. Instead of demanding outright abstinence, these devices encourage healthy interaction with potentially addictive experiences.

One way to avoid binge-watching Netflix is to either quit watching an episode before the cliffhanger arrives, or to quit watching briefly after the cliffhanger is resolved at the beginning of the next episode. In order to calculate whether one has time to incorporate games such as World of Warcraft into their lives, they might ask themselves whether they have time for the game today, because one’s schedule today is often indicative of what one’s schedule might be like in the future. 

When an ad agency in Sweden converted a set of stairs in a metro station into an electronic piano, many more commuters chose to take the stairs instead of the escalator. This is an example of utilizing addictive elements for a greater good. If the right thing to do is also fun, it will be easier to do the right thing.

A man named John Breen created an online vocabulary game that donated rice to a food charity for every correct answer a player guessed. This technique of turning a chore or task into a game is called “gamification” (298). A central tenant of gamification is that the experience itself should be fun and rewarding, instead of simply a means to a goal. Three elements of gamification include “points, badges, and leaderboards” (298). A person can score points in a frequent-flyer program, for example, by accumulating miles. They can earn badges by becoming gold or platinum status members, and are displayed on a sort of leaderboard when they are seen boarding flights ahead of other passengers. The Philips brand made a toothbrush that turned brushing one’s teeth into a game for kids by introducing a points system and a character called a Sparkly. A health app called Keas introduced a points system to reward healthy behavior. When the company Pfizer adopted Keas, it saw an increase in its employees’ healthy responses. A gamified school in New York called Quest to Learn has won the Math Olympiad three years in a row.

Gamification can increase productivity in workplaces as well. A company called LiveOps saw service ratings increase by 10% after it incorporated a “gamified dashboard” (307) for its employees. Hilton hotels made training more fun for new employees with a virtual game that simulated work experience.

Virtual reality games have been shown to reduce the experience of pain in burn victims while they have their wounds dressed. One study showed that playing Tetris after watching traumatic film footage reduced the formation of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder symptoms.

Despite these benefits, gamification has some critics. Evidence suggesting that a game called NeuroRacer improved mental functioning turned out to be mixed, and the FTC fined the makers of the game for “deceptive advertising” (313). Gamification can be utilized to fuel addictions that are harmful to users, while also replacing intrinsic motivations with extrinsic ones. In the end, gamification is not inherently good or evil, but instead depends on the context in which it is employed. 

Behavioral addiction is on the rise. It is difficult to tell what new technologically-aided experiences will be available in the future, but it seems likely that the problem of behavioral addiction will only be more rampant than it is today. Virtual reality, for example, might eventually make Facebook and Instagram seem outdated. Though doing away with technology entirely is unrealistic, there are solutions available that can make it less addictive. For example, young people can be trained to interact with screens safely starting at an early age, and workplaces can introduce measures that make it difficult to work after six. Such measures will help ensure humans remain capable of interacting healthily with one another face-to-face, rather than simply through their devices.