- [Woman] Social media has become part of our nature.
We post, we share, we like,
we follow, we unfollow, we subscribe.
But how is social media affecting us?
A small study of 20 college students found a correlation
between students who demonstrated higher levels
of Facebook addiction in activity
of the amygdala striatal system while they interacted
with Facebook signals.
This activation was the same scene in those
with substance addiction.
In a 2016 UCLA study, teens were split into two groups.
One were shown a photo with a high number of likes,
and the other group was shown the same photo
but with fewer likes.
Those who viewed the photo with more likes,
were more likely to like the photo themselves
than the group who saw the photo with fewer likes.
Again, it was the same picture.
This experiment found activity in multiple parts
of the brain when teens saw photos
they took receive a lot of likes.
In particular, this study found significant activity
in part of the brain's reward circuitry
known as the nucleus accumbens.
Dopamine is released in the brain after positive
social stimuli, such as likes
and positive comments on social media.
That photo she just posted, she got a bunch of likes,
releasing dopamine into her brain
and causing a feeling of satisfaction.
(loud applause)
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Psychologist B.F. Skinner found that mice would respond
to certain stimuli they knew resulted in a reward
more often when the reward came at variable times.
This theory can also be applied to social media
and the times we check it looking for a reward
in terms of a like, comment, or message.
We habitually check our accounts,
but we are not always rewarded.
Maybe this photo didn't get the amount of likes you wanted.
So you will try again and again and again
looking for that reward.
But wait, something else.
Have you ever felt your phone vibrate
when it really didn't?
According to Robert Rosenberger
of the Georgia Institute of Technology,
we've become so connected to our phones,
that they've sort of become part of our bodies.
Any time something stimulates and triggers sensation
in any area where you keep your phone,
you might believe it's your phone.
This is called phantom vibration syndrome.
Studies show that nearly 90% of people
report experiencing these phantom vibrations.
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