UPDATED 00:06 EDT / AUGUST 02 2018

APPS

Facebook and Instagram will now let you know how much you abuse them

Spending too much time on social media has been a concern of many for a while now, with former Facebook Inc. execs telling us social media is ruinous to kids‘ mental health and many others warning of a future in which people can hardly communicate face-to-face.

Mirroring what Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington told SiliconANGLE in an interview, both regarding what she’s developing in terms of safe tech use and what people can do to help themselves, Facebook wants us to limit our time spent on social media by tracking use and setting goals to prevent abuse.

Both Facebook and Instagram will now have a dashboard telling you how much time you’ve been spending on the platform. You’ll also be able to set time limits and turn off push notifications. These new features are called “Your time on Facebook” and, for Instagram, “Your activity.”

ueuv4kza-1This will roll out globally. Some 1 percent of users will have to go without, but that’s only to see what difference the features made. As you can see in the photos below, you’ll get all kinds of information about how much time you’ve been in each app. If you reach your limit, you are told so.
ueuv4kza-1 fb

The problem is that you can just ignore this and carry on. The apps won’t block you out for the day. That’s the problem most psychologists have pointed out: We will carry on because some people don’t have the mental strength to ignore how many people may have liked their latest piece of desperate narcissism.

This is something novelist Jonathan Franzen eloquently pointed out in 2011 when he compared the virtual “like” as a replacement to real-life love. It may sound hyperbolic, but recent studies have vindicated what Franzen said back then. What psychologists now call “feedback loops” he called a “flattering hall of mirrors,” something that may overshadow dashboard data.

While love might hurt, Franzen said, the virtual like is a disaster waiting to happen in terms of well-being. He has since been echoed by many experts, academics and intellectuals, including tech philosopher Jaron Lanier, who told the Cube recently he had tuned out of, and turned off, his social media accounts simply to be happier.

As Mark Zuckerberg has pointed out, Facebook wants you to use time on the platform more wisely. Such platforms are not going away and can certainly be used wisely, but as many others have pointed out, the force to scroll aimlessly, sometimes voyeuristically, is strong.

“These new tools are an important first step, and we are committed to continuing our work to foster safe, kind and supportive communities for everyone,” Ameet Ranadive, product management director at Instagram and David Ginsberg, director of research at Facebook, wrote in a joint post.

The problem is that once you are addicted to something, getting off it isn’t easy when the focus of your devotion is constantly in front of your face. Statistics tells us we are spending more time on social media year-by-year, and one might wonder if new controls will make any difference or indeed if social media companies already know it won’t.

The point is self-control, and it’s unlikely the object of the addiction is the right source to be teaching how to kick it. In the end, Facebook certainly doesn’t want you to quit.

Image: Fouquier via Flickr

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