In previous blog posts Dr. Kennedy and I have discussed the importance of defining a digital-self that maximizes balance, decreases stress and increases work or school productivity. “Un-plugging” is a term that is utilized to encourage us to step away from our gadgets in order to achieve some balance in one’s life. This technique can be useful for vacations or weekends when it is not necessary to be logged onto the computer or smart phone for work/school. The challenge of logging off really presents itself when we are required to be hooked into the World Wide Web, either for work or school. I see the problem similar to an eating disorder; one has to eat so abstinence is not an option. It would be great if we all had the impulse control and self-discipline to not compulsively check email, tweets, and Facebook status updates but most do not.
Ironically, the solution to the problem of managing technology overload might just be within technology. There are recent applications that assist in temporarily blocking sites while one is on his or her computer. Examples of these sites are, Freedom and Anti-Social (both for Macs). I find the names of these two sites fascinating. The name Freedom is well suited for what this site achieves (blocking you from the Internet completely) as it provides the user freedom from distraction. You can get that report or paper written with out the influx of instant messages competing for your attention. Anti-Social application lets the user select which specific sites they would like to block and for how long. Thus, if you find yourself tempted to watch that Dexter episode you missed or to holiday shop on EBay you can block out these specific sites. Why the application was named after a personality disorder is intriguing. Granted, a site named Healthy Boundaries is clearly not as catchy as Anti-Social but as we move into the future of needing more tools to help us manage the overload of technology it would be helpful for these applications to convey a sense of pro-social behavior as opposed to pathology.
The Anti-Social application, as described by Anti-Social, “is a neat little productivity application for Macs that turns off the social parts of the internet. When Anti-Social is running, you’re locked away from hundreds of distracting social media sites, including Facebook, Twitter and other sites you specify. With Anti-Social, you’ll be amazed how much work you get done when you turn off your friends.” They continue to elaborate, “When Anti-Social is running, the only way to get around the block is by rebooting your computer. As you will feel a deep sense of shame for rebooting just to waste time on Twitter, you’re unlikely to cheat.”
The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IVR) define anti-Social personality disorder, as “The essential feature of the diagnosis is a pervasive pattern of disregard for, and violations of, the rights of others that begins in childhood or early adolescence and continues into adulthood.” People having Anti-Social personality disorder are sometimes referred to as sociopaths or psychopaths. I am quite sure that the designers of Anti-Social Mac application did not intend to equate those who temporarily block out their friends and family with Charles Manson. As a psychologist who hears patients discussing the challenges of technology in their lives the disorder that would be a better match would be: Adjustment Disorder with Mixed Anxiety and Depressed Mood. I know, it doesn’t really roll off the tongue. Many of us are attempting to adjust to the role technology plays in our lives (positively and negatively) and this period of adjustment often causes some anxiety and feelings of depressed mood when the balance is off kilter.
Facebook is an area that often seems to create some anxiety in its users. Initially when you sign up it’s amazing. “Friends” that you haven’t heard from in years start contacting you and in one day you go from 1 “friend” to 290. Then the issues creep in: intrusive updates from these friends, what should your relationship status say, why didn’t you get invited to that party…and how in the world are you going to keep up with all of these “friends.” Research has demonstrated that it isn’t possible for humans to keep up with this many friends.
In the 1990’s, through his studies of primates, Oxford University anthropologist Robin Dunbar, reported that the number 150 is the largest social network the brain’s neo-cortex can handle. This 150 is known as “Dunbar’s Number.” Dunbar states that the neo-cortex of the brain developed roughly 250,000 (the neo-cortex is the newest part of the cerebral cortex to evolve) years ago during the Pleistocene era. A 150 corresponds roughly to the size of a Neolithic farming village, as well as the size of a unit of the Roman army. Dunbar’s research demonstrates that in groups greater than 150, social cohesion begins to disintegrate.
This year, Dunbar set out to determine whether Facebook and Twitter enable the mind to stretch and handle a greater number of social connections. After all, one is not trying to have coffee with their 2,000 Facebook friends. The answer appears to be no. Dunbar reported to The Times of London, “the interesting thing is that you can have 1,500 friends, but when you actually look at traffic on sites, you see people maintain the same inner circle of around 150 people that we observe in the real world.”
Since the neo-cortex can only handle an inner circle of 150, applications such as “Anti-Social” and “Freedom” will play a bigger role in helping us manage what the brain is telling us we cannot manage.
