How are social media platforms using gambling methods to create psychologcial dependencies?
Hey, it's Mai! arguably user interface (UI) and user experience (UX) are two aspects of design that are highly considered in the development of websites and apps. Companies implementing these into their design process have seen significant improvements with their products or services and interactions with users. The increase in the use of UI/UX design has led to an increase in research in the area by members of academia and of the industry. A significant amount of research has highlighted how social media is using gambling methods like slot machines that are discreetly designed onto our screens. My thesis will explore how social media platforms are using the same techniques as gambling firms to create psychological dependencies. It would be great read everyones views of this subject and you never know you might be included in my thesis...
Replies3
- My own feeling is that we all sense great sophistication in applications and UI/UX work and rightly so, some awesome things are being done but it's good to remember we are still very much in the infancy of this world.I have a hunch that applications will be built around a very much on a more expansive vision in the future, as hinted at by Daniel
- Great answer from Maximillian. Dark patterns, dark UX is a major conversation in the industry right now for a lot of the reasons you've outlined in your hypothesis, Mai.Not all UX/UI is a dark pattern however. The Nintendo Wii prompt to go outside and play, Netflix's are you still watching, Instagram's "you're up to date" are all good examples of companies trying to use their experiences to prompt a better emphasis on "time well spent."
- I think they are both drawing from the same sources. It's a combination of gamification, skinner boxes and pavlovian responses that creates engaging content beyond its actual value. The UX/UI design are ways of feeding into these aspects.The interesting thing is that these core shallow principles for retaining customer attention which have been well utilised in gambling and social media are seeping into other areas -some have been doing it longer than others- such as crowd-sourcing info (trip-advisor, google reviews, etc), fintech (monzo, revolut, etc) and video games.Turning real world costs and gains, time or money or information, into games with points allows people to engage more readily with the skinner boxes and pavlovian aspects as there is a detachment to they are really worth and this is only going to get more prevalent as more companies try to exploit these psychological loopholes.
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