Extract from ABC News
Yes, most of us spend too much time scrolling mindlessly on our smartphones. Yes, they are harming productivity and contributing to our increasing stress levels.
No, you shouldn't ditch yours, according to neuro-performance scientist Kristy Goodwin.
The dumb phone movement, favouring an old-fashioned phone not connected to the internet, is not her jam, and she's against "digital amputation" or breaking up with your phone.
"I cringe when I read the term 'digital detox'," Dr Goodwin says.
"They're not long-term, viable solutions. Regardless of whether you love it or loathe it, technology plays an inherent, inevitable part of our lives."
Australians spend about three hours a day on their devices. Undoubtedly, there are problems that come with that.
"Rates of stress and burnout are growing exponentially in Australia and throughout the world, and our digital habits are one of the chief reasons for that," Dr Goodwin says.
However, rather than abstaining from smartphones altogether, she says there are simple changes we can make to cultivate healthier, more sustainable, productive relationships with our smartphones.
Creating new micro-habits
To those of us keen to claw back the ability to read a book, ponder new ideas or enjoy uninterrupted conversations, Dr Goodwin recommends we make some micro changes.
The aim of the game? "To tame our toxic tech habits."
When a phone is in our line of sight, our cognitive performance drops by 10 per cent. So Dr Goodwin suggests keeping your phone out of sight during activities for which you need a high level of focus — say, compiling a spreadsheet or reading a book.
She also recommends turning your phone to greyscale (in your phone's settings) because our brains are primed for bright colours and apps like Instagram and TikTok become boring when rendered colourless.
Another micro-habit she suggests is using a designated spot in another room where you can put your devices when you want to be present and not distracted by them.
Logging out of apps that are your "digital Achilles heel" for certain stretches of time in the week can also be useful to help prevent being sucked into a social media vortex.
Or you could move the most tempting apps off the prime real estate that is your phone's home screen.
Dr Goodwin says locking devices away can also be really helpful in managing temptation. Her family uses a lockable box to remove devices during certain hours, which is "good for family accountability; everyone's device goes in that spot at a set time".
She uses the social media most tempting to her — Instagram — in conjunction with an app called One Sec. This pauses Instagram's opening, encourages her to do some breathing first, and then asks if she wants to open the app or do something else instead.
"Basically, it's creating a bit of a break … It's very easy to override," she says.
"It's not a prohibition app. It's just literally nudging healthier behaviours."
Dr Goodwin says the infinite scroll capacity of social media apps means that we enter a "state of insufficiency".
"We just never feel done or complete. It's a bottomless bowl."
She says user time limits that can be set in an individual platform's settings can also help. A pop-up reminds you you've reached your set time on the app, and prompts you to make a call: "You said you only wanted half an hour on Instagram, you've reached that threshold, do you want to continue?"
'I get to choose'
Psychologist and cyberpsychology expert Jocelyn Brewer takes a slightly different view on managing the negative impacts of smartphones.
Too often, people forget their own autonomy and efficacy, she argues.
There is a great app to help control your smartphone use, she says: "It's called your brain."
"The technology under our skull, aka our brain, is the most complex piece of technology on the planet. And when we actually start deploying that, we can control how we use our smartphone."
She rejects the notion of people being addicted to their smartphones, which "makes us seem like victims".
"I kind of call bullshit on that, because we are conscious consumers," she says.
"It's a consumer choice to buy [a device] in the first place … I then get to choose how I use it. I get to choose which apps I use, I get to choose when I take those off."
She says "salacious" headlines that liken tech to drugs or smartphones to smoking drive people into fear.
"And when you're in a fear response, you're not learning, you're not taking action … [you] can't solve problems," she says.
And Ms Brewer is firm that smartphone use is, indeed, a problem.
"There are [now] astronomical amounts of sensory data that our brains are trying to process," she says.
"It's incongruent. That's why we're getting tired, we're getting brain fog, we're getting anxious."
She doesn't claim smartphones are the only reason, but says they're certainly a major contributing factor.
Nuanced conversations with kids
For parents concerned with their children's online habits, Dr Goodwin says, depending on the child's age, it's important to be the pilot or co-pilot of "the digital plane".
"Don't be the passenger," she says.
To take an active role, parents should establish boundaries not on, but with, their kids, she says.
"Saying, 'You can't do this, you can [only] use it at this time', without any of the child's or teen's buy-in will be fruitless."
And conversations should be "far more nuanced" than just about screen time.
"So many parents obsess about how much time [children] are spending online, and that is important — but it shouldn't be the only question," Dr Goodwin says.
It's also important to discuss what apps, games or websites children can use, and when and with whom.
Finding the right balance is about ensuring children's time online "isn't eroding or displacing their basic physical and psychological needs", and that they're getting enough movement, sleep and social connection.
Getting your fill of digital nutrients
The digital environment is complex and high-sensory, yet how best to navigate it is rarely taught, Ms Brewer says.
"There is no conversation anywhere about how to teach the skills to be a human who is well and connected. These are lessons that no-one has given us," Ms Brewer says.
"No-one is talking about how to teach humans, not just young people, to control and use this technology in a way that aligns [with] our neurobiology."
Her analogy of "digital nutrition" encourages us to question what we're actually consuming.
"What are the virtual vitamins in what you're looking at?"
She advises asking yourself: "Is the content I'm consuming adding meaning? Is it useful in my life?"
"Really get clear about what deserves your time," she adds.
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