Sign in with Facebook
Canadian Reader's Reviews > Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked
Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked
by Adam Alter
by Adam Alter
Canadian Reader's review
bookshelves: media, social-media, modernity, critiques, did-not-finish, nonfiction, social-science, technology, addiction
Apr 20, 2017
bookshelves: media, social-media, modernity, critiques, did-not-finish, nonfiction, social-science, technology, addiction
Read in April, 2017
,
read count: 1
I read as far as the fifth chapter in Alter's book and learned a few interesting things along the way. However, based on what I did read, I found the book's subtitle inaccurate. Huge amounts of the first four chapters are dedicated to substance and behavioural addictions, in general, not "addictive technology" per se. There was interesting information about the importance of context or environment in addiction. Alter provides the example of veterans of the Vietnam war, many of whom used heroin while overseas but who did not return to the U.S. addicted, as they had now been removed from the context, conditions, and associations in which the drug use occurred. There was also some interesting material about behaviours (including repetitive actions known scientifically as "stereotypies") that accompany methamphetamine addictions and dopamine medications prescribed for Parkinson's disease. Some Parkinson's patients actually hoard their meds and even up their doses to ride on the wave of euphoria.
Alter writes well enough, mercifully resisting the temptation to describe the appearance or some idiosyncratic tic of the researchers he alludes to or quotes (so common in science and social science writing for a lay audience). He also refrains from supplying the often unnecessary "comic relief"used to jolly along nonfiction readers with short attention spans. In spite of the reasonably good writing, however, I just lost interest in the material. A fair bit of it I'd encountered before in other books or magazine feature articles, and when I got to a section about slot machines, my eyes were glazing over. I've never played the slots, so reading about them seemed like a very dull prospect.
For me, the take away was that tech designers spend huge amounts of time and money to make users find devices irresistible. Many of these designers don't use the products they or their companies design or produce. They are well aware of the addictive potential in their creations. That being the case, they often set very strict limits on their children's use of technology.
Alter writes well enough, mercifully resisting the temptation to describe the appearance or some idiosyncratic tic of the researchers he alludes to or quotes (so common in science and social science writing for a lay audience). He also refrains from supplying the often unnecessary "comic relief"used to jolly along nonfiction readers with short attention spans. In spite of the reasonably good writing, however, I just lost interest in the material. A fair bit of it I'd encountered before in other books or magazine feature articles, and when I got to a section about slot machines, my eyes were glazing over. I've never played the slots, so reading about them seemed like a very dull prospect.
For me, the take away was that tech designers spend huge amounts of time and money to make users find devices irresistible. Many of these designers don't use the products they or their companies design or produce. They are well aware of the addictive potential in their creations. That being the case, they often set very strict limits on their children's use of technology.
Sign into Goodreads to see if any of your friends have read
Irresistible.
Sign In »
Comments (showing 1-11 of 11) (11 new)
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Michelle
(new)
Apr 20, 2017 09:59PM
This does sound interesting by the title! (I wouldn't want to write/review about this subject matter) Great informative review CR.
reply
|
flag
*
Thanks for the feedback, Michelle! I'm intrigued that you wouldn't want to review this kind of material. I feel a little bad about failing to complete this . . .
Thank you for this, Michael. Long ago I read the article from the NY Times that Alter refers to in his intro about the Silicon Valley set sending their kids to Waldorf schools and limiting tech use in the home. I actually couldn't agree more. Unfortunately, I know from personal experience that school boards and principals have embraced digital technology quite uncritically, like "true believers."
This sounds like an interesting topic, CR. I recently read that the brain activity of players logging on to World of Warcraft and heroin addicts taking a hit are remarkably similar. It's a pity that the author couldn't make the book a little more captivating.
Maybe it was me more than the book. (I really recoiled at reading about slot machines for several pages!) Yes, the author does state that the same dopamine centres are activated with behavioural addictions as are activated in substance abuse. Also, re: your point about WoW, some game developers avoid this game because they are entirely cognizant of its "irresistible" nature. It would seem that the game-addicted character in The Nix is not an exaggeration. Alter tells the story of a kid who played WoW for 5 weeks and gained over 40 pounds. He barely left the game even to sleep. There's a facility in Washington state dedicated solely to gaming addictions. Even those who attend have to be careful that they do not later return to the same milieu in which the addiction developed. The boy learned this the hard way, had to return to the gaming rehab centre, and be part of a maintenance program.
Canadian wrote: "Maybe it was me more than the book. (I really recoiled at reading about slot machines for several pages!) Yes, the author does state that the same dopamine centres are activated with behavioural ad..."I totally thought of that character from The Nix when I was reading your review. I used to work for a video games company myself and we released a similar MMO style game to WoW. We were encouraged to play the game in the office so as to become more familiar with it. I could see the addiction gradually begin to take over some of my colleagues - nothing near the level of the example you mention but still concerning.
When I was a kid you could pick up a game for 20 minutes and then leave it behind without a second thought. But recently they have become so immersive and demanding that it takes hours to make any headway in them. I can see how these games (MMOs especially) can take over a person's life.
Interesting that with growing knowledge in the field of neuroscience, human vulnerabilities can be further exploited. I appreciated reading your comments, based as they are, on real-life experience. The behavioural addictions begin early for kids. In Canada, it's Minecraft for school-aged kids. It's hard to learn or sustain attention for tasks that require mental work, where the rewards and the dopamine hits are less certain.. What I've found frustrating in the field of education is the entirely uncritical acceptance of technology by administrators and higher-ups. Alter also addresses changes noted in young people's (particularly girls') capacity for empathy in light of the conflict, bullying, and shaming that occurs in social media.
Canadian wrote: "Interesting that with growing knowledge in the field of neuroscience, human vulnerabilities can be further exploited. I appreciated reading your comments, based as they are, on real-life experience..."I totally agree. Technology has improved our lifestyles in so many ways but many people seem oblivious to its dangers. As you mentioned, children are growing up these days with technology as an extra limb. It can be very useful in schools as a teaching aid but I worry about how dependent pupils have become on it. When I was a student we weren't even allowed to use calculators, but I think this was a good thing as it sharpened my arithmetic skills.
Social media is another can of worms. I have restricted myself to just Twitter but I do feel enslaved by it at times!
I finished it today, though it took me close to a month. The bulk of the book is/are thoroughly researched examples to support his ideas and explanations. But final chapter is really, really interesting. He talks about "gamification." Early on, he takes about WoW being incredibly addictive; just like Fitbits. And like Fitbits, boring or tedious tasks can be turned into fun games that motivate us to do things.
My favorite example is of a school in New York that turns it classes into giant Quests like an RPG. Each homework assignment is like a quest, and completing it earns literal AND metaphorical points/experience. Each test is called a Boss, and the final test is called a Final Boss. On average, about 70% of the class graduates compared to the 50%ish of the regular schools. Intriguing, right? He also explains there's a fine line between beneficial behaviors and addictive behaviors, and the pros and cons of each.
Very interesting read.
Nick wrote: "I finished it today, though it took me close to a month. The bulk of the book is/are thoroughly researched examples to support his ideas and explanations. But final chapter is really, really intere..."Well done, Nick! Thanks for filling me in. Apparently it isn't all doom and gloom.
