![]() ![]() Social media is similarly distracting, but unlike email, it provides inconsistent rewards. A 2012 study in which office workers were not permitted to check their email for several days at a time led to better performance on work tasks and increased productivity. That means that frequently checking email ensures that the individual never reaches a state of complete concentration during the day. Once a person has been interrupted, it takes about 25 minutes to return to full concentration. Every time an individual receives an email, he or she must stop the current task to read and respond to the email. On the surface, this seems productive and efficient, but, in fact, it is another type of addictive behavior. For example, an individual may receive an email and respond to it within a few seconds of its arrival. This is because they are always available and so demand constant attention. Social media and email are two types of technology that have the potential to easily become addictive. Up to 60% of Americans do not get enough sleep, and at least some of this is because of addiction to technology and overuse of screens. ![]() A lack of sleep can lead to heart disease, depression, and a host of other chronic health problems. Staring at a bright screen all day can disrupt sleep patterns and cause tiredness. There are several health reasons to break the cycle of addiction to technology. This process is the same for substance and behavioral addictions, though behavioral addictions tend to be easier to break. ![]() This leads to people repeating the same behavior frequently to achieve the same results. However, the longer someone repeats a pleasurable behavior, the less effective it becomes. Just like other addictive substances, distracting or fun technologies stimulate the pleasure center of the brain and can provide a temporary escape from something in real life. For example, drug or alcohol addicts are much less likely to relapse if they have a stable environment to return to after getting clean. Stressful or unhappy circumstances can contribute to the development of addiction. Addiction to technology leads people to neglect their families and responsibilities and can have other debilitating consequences. One expert estimates that up to 40% of players of massively multiplayer online games become addicted, which has led to the creation of treatment centers for technology addiction around the world. Video games are another potentially addictive technology. Experts recommend spending no more than one hour a day using a smartphone, but many people spend at least three hours on their phones. Many people spend significantly longer looking at screens than they think they do, checking their devices even when they don’t have anything pressing to do on them. The book begins with the assertion that people can easily become addicted to smartphones, video games, and other technologies. ![]()
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