“To reach those heights you need scale and growth, and for growth you need addiction. Addiction is in opposition to our social & mental health.”
As someone building a platform with a social element, I have spent a ton of time thinking about this issue in hopes of avoiding it. A major focus on mine is getting people outside to improve their mental health.
It’s a difficult conundrum. When I ask people what app they are most addicted to it’s almost always Instagram or recently, tik tok. I rarely hear people say they are addicted to scrolling Strava or Spotify, yet these platforms are successful and have social elements.
I think we can avoid the addictive elements of a platform if it serves a purpose beyond distraction, but rather offer tools that empower people to do more than just distract themselves. Jury is still out on that one though.
What has your experience been with addictive tech?
It's a good point. Maybe I should've noted 'addiction' as a loose term. Just because you love something or can't live with out it--or are addicted to it--doesn't make it a bad thing. In order for any app to grow, Spotify or Strava included, they need some level of virality, a positive growth coefficient. People need to love the product and experience enough to share it and to talk about it, and the product teams embed features tied to growth KPI's--or indoctrinating/addicting their users. Whether good or bad, those experiences tether us to a digital world, largely free of true human interaction.
Thanks for clarifying! Yes, even the terminology around building and growing a digital product sounds addictive. I know there are pushes in the design community to stop saying "users" and "hooking" to humanize people who use their products.
It will be a challenging balance between creating a product that people love, but doesn't negatively impact their lives by taking them away from real life human experiences that are vital to well-being. I have a few luddite leaning friends that love this topic. I'm glad the conversation is gaining momentum.
“To reach those heights you need scale and growth, and for growth you need addiction. Addiction is in opposition to our social & mental health.”
As someone building a platform with a social element, I have spent a ton of time thinking about this issue in hopes of avoiding it. A major focus on mine is getting people outside to improve their mental health.
It’s a difficult conundrum. When I ask people what app they are most addicted to it’s almost always Instagram or recently, tik tok. I rarely hear people say they are addicted to scrolling Strava or Spotify, yet these platforms are successful and have social elements.
I think we can avoid the addictive elements of a platform if it serves a purpose beyond distraction, but rather offer tools that empower people to do more than just distract themselves. Jury is still out on that one though.
What has your experience been with addictive tech?
It's a good point. Maybe I should've noted 'addiction' as a loose term. Just because you love something or can't live with out it--or are addicted to it--doesn't make it a bad thing. In order for any app to grow, Spotify or Strava included, they need some level of virality, a positive growth coefficient. People need to love the product and experience enough to share it and to talk about it, and the product teams embed features tied to growth KPI's--or indoctrinating/addicting their users. Whether good or bad, those experiences tether us to a digital world, largely free of true human interaction.
Thanks for clarifying! Yes, even the terminology around building and growing a digital product sounds addictive. I know there are pushes in the design community to stop saying "users" and "hooking" to humanize people who use their products.
It will be a challenging balance between creating a product that people love, but doesn't negatively impact their lives by taking them away from real life human experiences that are vital to well-being. I have a few luddite leaning friends that love this topic. I'm glad the conversation is gaining momentum.