An Attack From All Sides; Defeating the Doom Scroll: Designing Less Addictive Social Media Apps

As the internet and smartphones have developed, people have rapidly embraced new forms of social interaction, such as social media and dating apps. However, the development and adoption of these new environments has introduced major problems for users; profit-driven design and perceived social immunity on the internet are major causes of addictive, toxic, and dangerous behaviors, especially in young people. These behaviors have major consequences for society, putting people at increased risk of mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and body dysmorphia, as well as creating situations where people’s physical safety is at risk (Tran et al. 2019; Porter et al., 2024). My technical research targets addictive behaviors on social media, a major part of this overarching issue that can lead to depression and anxiety, while my STS research targets the design and usage of dating applications, which can lead to similar mental health issues and put people’s physical safety at risk.