How Dopamine Can Make Us Crazed Smartphone Addicts

Sometimes I’m dazed after using my smartphone for too long. I switch between YouTube and other apps in an endless loop. My head starts to hurt. I feel like an addict. What’s happening? Why do I feel so drawn to this miniature computer? Dopamine is a big reason why.

What is Dopamine?

Dopamine is a molecule transported in our brain, and it’s involved in essential functions like blood flow, digestion, sleep, and more. But it is also a feel-good chemical, and it’s a critical part of our behavior reward system. For example, our ancestors received a dose in their hunt for food, and dopamine helped ensure our survival as a species:

Neuroscientist Robert Sapolsky studied when dopamine release happens. A trained monkey pressed a lever ten times after a light turned on, and the reward arrived as a raisin. Dopamine release was highest just after the signal, not at the prize. In Sapolsky’s book Behave, he states, “the pleasure is in the anticipation of reward, and the reward itself is nearly an afterthought” (1).

Relating this to cell phones, think about the red dots we see on our apps. These are enticing, trained signals that give us a pleasurable dopamine hit. The red dot means new content is on the other side, and we can’t help but open the app.

Variable Rewards Boost Dopamine Big Time

Sapolsky also varied reward frequency after the lever press. Instead of receiving raisins 100% of the time, it became a 50% chance. It turns out 50% doubled the amount of dopamine released in the monkeys.

Similarly, B.F. Skinner, a well-known behaviorist, researched varying rewards. If a pigeon randomly receives food after pecking, it performs the behavior more often. In addition, the pigeon won’t quit the behavior easily compared to other reward schedules (2).

In other words, variable rewards are like a slot machine. We don’t know when the next like will arrive, but we receive a massive dopamine hit when it happens.

It’s not crazy to say developers design content to be more variable to promote compulsive use. For example, as I swipe down on the YouTube home feed to refresh, there’s an enticing pause before the results load. Then I get a whole new set of videos to dive into, and I can repeat this behavior as many times as I wish.

The Revolving Door of Smartphone Use

In conclusion, we arrive at something called the compulsive use loop or the “compulsion loop.” This behavior loop keeps us hooked to smartphones, and we can’t wait for the next dose, especially at step 1. Understanding this loop clarifies the struggle and will help in the battle against compulsive use.

Key Takeaways:

1. The notification of a “like” produces a significant dopamine spike in our brains. Humans love that feeling. The reward itself doesn’t generate the same level of this molecule.
2. A variable reward system doubles the dopamine released and makes leaving the compulsion loop more difficult.

I will discuss addiction to technology in future blog posts, among other topics. Thanks for reading my first blog post!