So what I was trying to say is that intentions are not always back. But then the actions that we take sometimes might not reflect the impact that we want to have on the world.And then when the impact we have on the world is not what we want, it's what we call the unintended consequences. Um So I'll give you two examples to have a look through that. So the first one is the famous scrolling spiral. So as the scrolling spiral, we all can recognize ourselves probably in the situation that we end up using a news feed in multiple apps today. And a lot of them have business methods such as engagement and then they created the news feed so that they can engage users and that users can spend more time with y but then when they designed this, they actually didn't really reflect on the fact that when you just keep on scrolling on the app, people might not stop before they scroll.

So they might just keep on scrolling. And this was actually an activity without intention because when you scroll, you are most likely not looking for something specific. So you're just scrolling through just to find something interesting. You're basically hunting for like some treasure or some reward in the news feed. And that's what makes it actually very addictive because we try to find rewards in it. And actually there's sometimes something interesting and sometimes not. But it's a perfect example of how people's time can be wasted based on a design decision because this was actually a trendy design pattern back then. Infinite scrolling. It was called maybe some of the other designers know. But it's basically the fact that instead of having a button to say load more where you explicitly click and you get more results, it just automatically keeps on showing you. So here that you can see the design of power into just making one small decision, how it has affected millions of lives today and how much time they spend in news feeds. The second example that I want to share is the algorithms that kill. Uh It's basically a suicide story by a teenager of 14 years old Molly Russell. Uh It was basically a teenager who was feeling quite depressed and she started looking into self-harm images and it was in Pinter.

So Pinter then started to propose more of the similar images and there was no filter on the uh intensity of the graphic uh content. So there was keep on uh recommending her images which actually ended up in her committing suicide. So here, unfortunately, we can also see an example of an unintended consequence because the algorithm at that point didn't know that this is graphical and can cause this. But it doesn't even end there because teenagers, they measure their self esteem with likes and they are more depressed than ever. They are like less able to enjoy the present moment and have real life experiences. So what I'm trying to say with everything is that the impact we have as people who create technology has a ripple effect in people's lives and we cannot underestimate the impact that everything we do can have in other people. So the more the application or products that you create, the larger the rich, it has the more negative impact potentially it can have on people. But let's dive in deep into it. Now, how do addictive technologies work? So here this is my personal theory on how it works and I will explain uh every piece of it. But basically the first part of it is the fact that we all start with our personal factor in it.

So there's always a personal situation for an addiction to arise. So we have a problem or an emotional state. Uh and it always starts with us and we are the ones that have the power to control it or start it. So the second aspect is the technology, the technology is the rectangle here. And basically, it's about using persuasion psychology with the use of technology to make us use a certain product and then use it all over again until a new habit is formed. So once the new habit is formed, the product is permanently inside our brains and then it becomes sticky. So then we associate that product with a specific use. So when I'm bored, for example, I might go and check on Instagram, that's a bit how it works. And what I want to say here is that this is of course my personal theory based on the research I've done and um these aspects, it's not that um one of them in isolation can cause addiction, but it can be a combination of different aspects that can lead to it. All right. So let's start with the personal aspect. Uh So we know, I don't know if all of you know the mass hierarchy of needs, but basically, it comes down to the fact that we use certain products hoping that they will satisfy our needs. That's also when we buy things, we have a certain core human need behind it. For example, the need for belonging or the need to be approved by our years.

And that's the reason why we do certain things use technology or share pictures on Instagram or anything we do online. There is a need behind this and this is where actually uh we are gonna do things in order to satisfy these needs. And sometimes uh when we are in a bad situation, it can lead to unhealthy behaviors and patterns. The second part is the persuasive technology. So the persuasive technology comes down to um sales techniques. There's a very great book that explains these techniques of influence.

It's a book of Chinni which is based on the techniques that sales people use to make us purchase things. And basically, it comes down to the fact that our brain has certain way of thinking certain glitches, which um everybody of us has it. And even if we know that we have it, we still fall in the same trap. So it basically appeals to the emotions at the expense of logic and they make us go in a specific state and in that state, we're more manipulated so they can make us do a certain uh action much easier. So for example, an example of this can be the need for desire. So the desire to be better approved and have a better social steps than other people. Uh Here's where the luxury brands play a lot into a role or uh the need for social proof. So when we, for example, see a line in a restaurant with people queuing, we have this impression that because a lot of people are doing it, it must be good. So it's the fact that we look for proof to other people on what to do. And this can also be used online when we use certain products to play on the formal aspect and on the peer pressure Now, if you look at the technology aspect, do you want to know how it works? Ok. I just played with your curiosity right now.

So that's what exactly the technology tries to do. So it's in your pocket and it reaches you everywhere and it triggers your curiosity by sending you notifications that there is something waiting for you and letting this dopamine boost in your brain. So every time we check this notification or we check our emails, there's a dopamine hormone being uh produce, which is the hormone of rewards, which makes us feel good about doing something. And this is really how a lot of this addictive tech plays. So in order to use the product, so it's a combination of course, of these two. But there's also a very interesting model which I don't have a lot of time to explain in detail, but I recommend you to check it online after the talk. It's the model of uh BG folk. He's a behavioral scientist at Stanford. And basically, he created this model which says that if we want to create a certain behavior, if we want to make a behavior change or make a certain behavior happen, we have to increase people's motivation, ability and give them a specific prop or a trigger. And when we can do this all at the same time, the behavior cannot happen but cannot um cannot do else than happen. So I really don't want you to go into detail to look at it.

But this is a great model that a lot of designers use today uh in famous tech products that uh actually play around a lot with this ability factor to make things easy for us and the prompts of the trigger with the population with the technology aspect. All right. And then in terms of forming habit, uh new habits, there's also a really great book about this uh habit forming Technology, which is the book. H it's a really great book. I really recommend you to read it and it's about making people um create habits. So let's look at it with an example. So what the model says is that there are four steps and it's a cycle that starts again and again. So it starts with the trigger, internal or external first. For example, if I'm bored and I have a notification which are triggers, I will probably go and see that notification. So I take the action and then when somebody has responded to my message, I have a reward because this person responded to my message. So it creates this dopamine boost in my brain. And then the last part of the model is the fact that when I reply, I invest into the product. So I plant new seeds because I'm gonna get a new response, which means that I'm gonna go back to the product and then this cycle is gonna start all over again.

So the more we repeat this cycle, the more habits are formed with the products that we use and the more sticky the product becomes and um gets a bit stuck in our brain. Uh So just to clarify this model on itself, it doesn't have anything to do with addiction per se. It's more related to the habit forming technology. But as I said before, these concepts are all a bit related and if used in the wrong way, they can of course uh lead with addictions. And I will share with you a great example of an impact where um this has been used for good. It's one app that's called forest, which is basically productivity app where you uh focus, you put the time into focus and you get points and with these points, you can exchange them to create, to plant real trees. So it's actually a really great app because it helps people achieve their goals and it benefits the user and the society at the same time while using this habit forming technology. So it's a really interesting concept. So last, but not least as designers, I really recommend you to practice real humane design because we sometimes say that we practice human certain design, but it's definitely not because we don't respect people's attention and time.

So there are many humane tech principles created by a lot of human tech organizations out there. I will also list some resources for you later and you can just take these principles and with them into the workflow. So just make it part of your daily life as a designer to double check how this design hard the person because we have to remember that people also exist outside of our product, outside of our app and they do other things during the day. So we cannot just expect them to devote all their attention and time into what we create. And at the end, it's all about violence. So we can't choose how we operate. If we, if it the product just benefits us, it's then it's evil. If it benefits us for a commercial purpose, we are all allowed, of course, to make profit, but it's much better if you can operate on the motivational aspect, which benefits the user or the societal aspect, which can benefit the society as a whole. Now, how can you reverse addictive technologies? So it starts of course, with you and with reflecting above your own technology use as a person. Do you have a clear intention when you use technology? Do you just pick up your smartphone because you're bored? Do you know how much time you mindlessly use every day on your phone or on apps? And does technology get into the way of your relationships?

And what I want you to remember after this talk is next time you pick up the phone, try to think about what was your goal before you pick up this phone? Were you bored? You have this feeling of emptiness and try to think about is technology really helping you solve this problem or does it make it worse? Because I totally think that for me, at least, especially it was making worse. And I also have some personal tips. Uh, I'm running out of time so I will have to like share this afterwards. But, um, some of these things have worked really well for me, especially the do million digital detox um and putting devices in a separate room or making noted rules. But just point out also to other people when they are addicted. Uh because sometimes it's just enough for one person to speak up and point out and to break this chain of, you know, mindless scrolling and everything. So I want to end this talk with my favorite quote, which is that change is hard. But if we want to see change happen, we have to be the change that we wish to see in this world. So it's my favorite quote by Mahatma Gandhi. So I hope that this talk today gave you some information that you can go through yourselves and for others in your work. And I've put together some resources on my personal website.

So you can definitely check this out if you want to learn more about the topic or have more resources like design principles and let's connect via linkedin or via email or Twitter. I would like to get to know you and, uh, yeah, hear what you thought about the talk. Thank you very much.