Hello World: Being Human in the Age of Algorithms

by Hannah Fry

Although the path to the top wasn’t set in stone, the researchers found that visitors were much more likely to download tracks they knew were liked by others. If a middling song got to the top of the charts early on by chance, its popularity could snowball. More downloads led to more downloads. Perceived popularity became real popularity, so that eventual success was just randomness magnified over time. There was a reason for these results. It’s a phenomenon known to psychologists as social proof. Whenever we haven’t got enough information to make decisions for ourselves, we have a habit of copying the behaviour of those around us. It’s why theatres sometimes secretly plant people in the audience to clap and cheer at the right times. As soon as we hear others clapping, we’re more likely to join in. When it comes to choosing music, it’s not that we necessarily have a preference for listening to the same songs as others, but that popularity is a quick way to insure yourself against disappointment. ‘People are faced with too many options,’ Salganik told LiveScience at the time. ‘Since you can’t listen to all of them, a natural short cut is to listen to what other people are listening to.’