Technology and Human

How technology does technology affect us?

‘Just five more minutes, just five more minutes.’ My friend and I have been scrolling and watching videos through our smartphones for the past hour having the same mindset, taking a break in the next five minutes. We were planning to do something together to catch up with each other but that wasn’t going according to plan, spending the past hour or two on our smartphones. After that, we decided to finally take a break and finally go to a nearby cafe. While queuing up for the drinks, if someone were to take a small glance at us, they would see two girls stuck in their own virtual universe. No one would have possibly thought that we were friends as no communication was happening. I had a sensation to where I experienced a thought that our lives were dependent on our phones and it would change in a detrimental way without them. 

Despite knowing its dangers and harms, we would still continue to use smartphones as a form of pleasure, since it overrides our decision making us feel ‘glued to our phone.’ It is an essential device in our life which was designed to make life better and more accessible, but it has been affecting many factors of how it eventually deteriorated health, focus and our mental wellbeing. The justification to why it is extremely hard to stop using our smartphone is because it is tied and connected to our entire daily routine. For example, how we have to check our phones, first thing in the morning and last thing at night leading to our dependence on these devices.

The complex algorithms that these applications create, such as giving content which users need, increases usage in each individual causing a greater chance of smartphone addiction. This creates a thought that sometimes, we can’t control ourselves with these psychological techniques, forcing us to use them even when we sometimes don’t want to. 

Dr. Anna Lembke, a professor of psychiatry and behavioural science in Stanford University School of Medicine, states that ‘Digital media activates the same part of our brain as drugs and alcohol releasing dopamine.’ The justification to that statement is that dopamine receptors in the brain would give us expectations of something pleasurable, keeping us checking our smartphones persistently. With reward systems for instance, winning a game against your friends or likes and messages through social media, it keeps us checking our smartphones more frequently, therefore staying on these smartphones longer. This turns into a habit loop which becomes automatic overtime forcing us to check our smartphones especially during boredom or downtimes. With ongoing exposure to this unreal happiness, dopamine enters a deficit state causing insomnia, stress, anxiety and many more factors. This causes a cycle for us to be in the digital media regularly to stop ‘feeling bad.’ But overtime, the more you use your smartphone the more depressed you will be causing behavioural addictions which is similar to addictions in substances like alcohol or drugs.

Applications on smartphones use many techniques to keep us engaged and addicted. Social media addiction is growing every day with the universal use of smartphones. Algorithms which are created within these apps vary from frequent updates and notification to infinite scroll which would cause distraction on essential tasks shifting our main focus. These apps would moreover profit when we stay and use their platform longer creating monetization from the user’s attention. 

With the overuse of smartphones each day, we can use Aristotle's theory to describe how a routine which uses smartphones everyday is particularly hard to break out of. Habit is described as ‘A motor or cognitive routine that, once it is triggered, completes itself without conscious supervision.’ This correlates to smartphone use deeply as we continue to use it even though we do not realise it but because of dopamine, which releases happiness when we think about smartphones and the joy we have. Aristotle explained that ‘vicious habits’ is a form of routine which we do everyday that affects our mental and physical health negatively. But while vicious habits do exist amongst many people, ‘virtues habits’ are also a type of habit which explains the self-honesty and self-awareness that many people actually have. This shows that they are actually in control of their habits and screen time, using it at a good amount and for good reasons.  This connects to smartphone use and how we can control ourselves to how much we use it and how we use it showing how Aristotle’s theory links to the modern-day use of these devices. 

Smartphone use would often connect to emotional and social needs as it can instantly connect you with family and friends around the world making you feel that you need it. ‘FOMO’ or fear of missing out can cause the need to be on social media often making you want to feel connected to everyone else since you do not want to miss out on any important trends or events. After that, you might even want to get supportive likes and comments across social media platforms as it can make you feel a sense of acceptance from the society, making you delighted. At times, you might post on the media for only social validation as a way to fight back ‘FOMO’ signaling that you are connected to the digital world and involved in popular trends like everyone else. Occasionally with social validation, you would act based on what others like and not your true identity. This can lead to a cycle making you feel like you are losing your individuality and personal self.

Social norms and expectations create thoughts of which we are expected to always be available and online. This pressure keeps us on screen for a prolonged amount of time as the brain triggers a notion that without being responsive to the online community, it will cause you to feel solitary and excluded. This fear of disconnection tends to lead to compulsive phone usage and anxiety.

Despite the fact that smartphones may cause harm to all of us if over usage happens, everyone including me still uses it. This is simply due to the fact it meets our needs. This eventually reflects how there are actually many benefits of smartphone usage if we do not overuse them. Many tasks and assignments on smartphones give a positive outcome for example: banking, navigation or learning. This device assists with everyday needs helping to make our lives better. Without smartphones, travelling may also become limited since it would be difficult to access GPS navigation and applications therefore complications can happen. Besides this, it can assist in helping many individuals to earn money when posting and marketing items on social media, helping to fulfill some people’s passions easier. It can support many students into their studies since there are many online courses on the internet which can aid in education. Other than this, they can get textbooks and articles which can help expand their knowledge. Medically, it can help patients with many things, for example, a reminder to take medications and healthy food incase of times where we may be unaware of what we are supposed to intake into our bodies. Other than this, it can help patients to remember when their annual check-up is making sure they don’t forget when their appointment is. Furthermore, it assists with helping in emergencies as it can help track close relatives and friends down if they are lost or immediately call emergency services if something bad is happening. Smartphones create accessibility for everyone in the world as it helps connect you to the global content, enhancing opportunity for all. This gives a chance for everyone to find a passion for what they love. 

This creates an idea to illustrate the thought that smartphones are a critical part of our existence and that we should use them at a healthy and balanced amount to avoid addiction or a negative outcome. This demonstrates the fact that everything has its negatives and positives but it is really up to you of how you decide its result. Are you controlling technology or is technology controlling you?

Bibliography 

Taylor.I. (2024). How to finally break free from your smartphone addiction. BBC Science Focus. https://www.sciencefocus.com/science/dopamine-fasting-smartphone-addiction

Columbia University. (2023). Smartphones, Social Media, and Their Impact on Mental Health. Columbia University Department of Psychiatry. https://www.columbiapsychiatry.org/research/research-areas/child-and-adolescent-psychiatry/sultan-lab-mental-health-informatics/research-areas/smartphones-social-media-and-their-impact-mental-health 

De.D. (2025). Social Media Algorithms and Teen Addiction: Neurophysiological Impact and Ethical Considerations. Cureus. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11804976/ 

Pacheco.D. (2023). How Electronics Affect Our Sleep. Sleep Foundation. 

https://www.sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/how-electronics-affect-sleep 

Bernacer.J, & Murillo.J. (2014). The Aristotelian conception of habit and its contribution to human neuroscience. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4217385/