Source: Court Document (PDF)
Master docket: In Re: Social Media Adolescent Addiction/Personal Injury Products Liability Litigation
The case is in the California District Court and is IN RE: SOCIAL MEDIA ADOLESCENT ADDICTION/PERSONAL INJURY PRODUCTS LIABILITY LITIGATION.
What is interesting is how “well meaning” people can cause grave harm and not understand the gravity of their actions. The only way this can be understood is to recognise the reality of sin. Without that, repentence (which is what leads to real reform) will always remain distant.
The following is a chat between employees at a major social media company (September 10, 2020), included as an exhibit in the court case. Names have been redacted. It offers a window into how people inside these companies think about the problem.
oh my gosh yall IG is a drug
Lol, I mean, all social media. We’re basically pushers.
Seriously it is! we are causing Reward Deficit Disorder bc people are binging on IG so much they can’t feel reward anymore…like their reward tolerance is so high
Yeah, I was starting to think the same thing yesterday when you made that gambling reference. It’s kind of scary :(
I know Adam doesn’t want to hear it - he freaked out when I talked about dopamine in my teen fundamentals leads review but its undeniable!
Its biological and psychological truth
Found this article from Harvard that really well written/clear but also implies we know what we’re doing lol
http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2018/dopamine-smartphones-battle-time/
Yeah, a previous Notifications Growth PM and I were afraid of this last year. We were really supportive of features that encouraged people to step away from their phones/IG once in a while.
This: Similar to slot machines, many apps implement a reward pattern optimized to keep you engaged as much as possible. Yikes
yeah like I said its funny bc they act like we do it on purpose
maybe there is some diabolical business person but that would be so weird considering so many people work to try to make the experience better and give people what they want
I struggle with this sometimes–I don’t think there’s a nefarious plot to addict people but I think the nature of capitalism and endless growth sort of fuels it, regardless of intent.
Yeah I’m sure you’re right
I think all of us (employees) work tirelessly to make our products a positive experience for people but the top down directives drive it all towards making sure people keep coming back for more.
That would be fine if its productive but most of the time it isn’t – we do have those bright spots where people learn something or get support or find a community but the majority is just mindless scrolling and ads and superficial interactions
I wonder if we can somehow make the argument that increased positivity/happiness while using the app = long term retention
but an unrewarding addiction = churn
Yeah pretty sure not all the people unsatisfied with IG have churned - theres prob more people stuck in the habit loop than not
I’m starting to feel this should be a note
in addition to the deck…deck for presentation…note for circulation
That’s not a bad idea
Yeah bc I feel like its a bit of a thought provoker ya know?
I think we should publish the note and then schedule a presentation for the product teams and other interested peeps
I also think a note is a good way to link back to supporting research and literature
Yeah, the note could touch on the healthy engagement aspects from this and other research.
Exactly…plus that would buy us time to polish the presentation
I think most of the narrative is there so I can whip a note pretty quick