I think I might have a social media/ texting addiction. I know that it activates certain dopamine receptors in my brain when I receive a text message. I notice it a lot of the time while studying or when I am tired of writing a paper. I'll check my phone out of instinct, if only for a split second of dopamine transporter activation. I think I should just turn my phone off when I study. When I receive a text message, it's almost as if I have a conditioned response like Pavlov's dog. I get a rush of excitement to see what someone says to me. It also happens before I go to sleep. I notice that after responding to the text, I am extremely slow at getting back into the material I was studying. I also use my phone in class a lot, which I think most professors hate so I am trying to cut down on that. I usually respond right away to text messages or IM's and I see lots of other college students doing the same thing. I am also carrying out multiple conversations. I actually read a study that claims there are "three ways in which IMing might interfere with academic reading: (a) displacement of time available for study, (b) direct interference while studying, and (c) development of a cognitive style of short and shifting attention...The distracting, multitasking nature of IMing was apparent. Most (63%) responded right away whenever they received an instant message and were IMing three or four people at the same time. The majority were involved in other activities while IMing, with 30% doing academic work at the same time."
These results yielded to be very eye opening to me, and were very relatable. Our generation seems to have a huge technology dependency that mostly revolves around our smart phones and social networking websites.
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