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Digital Detox or Digital Rehab? some starting thoughts on audience

About a month ago I arrived in the picturesque  Italian town of Udine. The first thing I noticed when I arrived was not it's Venetian arches, it's cobble stoned alleys, the smell of fresh bread and basil, or even the godly german/italian men on bikes threading through the city ... the only thing I thought about for the first three days were two resounding words: no service.

I had run out of travel credit. And when I checked in to the residence where I was staying two words became four

 NO SERVICE and NO INTERNET

and the words kept multiplying:

“Not for three days... they're fixing it!” Two desperate young housemates also holidaying and in similar situations were almost in tears (one had no phone at all! the horror!)

“ Ok, let's be calm” I said “ where is the nearest internet caffe`?”

“ No one knows ...  AND we have no internet to find it !”

We wound through the alleys and stood on street corners with my incapacitated phone, eyes fixed on the screen, searching for a decadent whif of someone else's wifi.

When Bernadette and I hit the streets, camera in tow ( stay tuned for the full video), hoping to find out what other members of the 'switched on' gen y thought of a situation where everything turned off; it seemed their words multiplied in exactly the same way...

“ If I can't use the internet... I would use my cell phone” was Brian's immediate reaction. “ Oh I can't use my cell phone …. um ... can I use a pay phone?"  Have a listen to what Brian, Eloise and Tindai have to say :

Psychology student Stefano likened his feelings for the internet to his understanding of drug addiction take a look:

In essence, to me and to everyone we spoke with the internet represents; communication ( everyone mentioned Facebook), entertainment and ultimately connection.. to us, a 'digital detox' would be far from a therapeutic experience: it would mean being rudely cut from a social world... 

But this isn't an ideal of the internet that everyone shares, in fact it is an ideal characteristic for the most part of generation y... After talking to some other people I became acutely aware that for our blog topic we had not one but two potential audience 'types', the second in a very different life stage and holding a very different attitude about what it means to be always connected...

“ I would not mind at all if it all shut down, then maybe I could have some peace... and a bit of silence”.  Vincent Scali, accountant and tax consultant is from audience type number two. It is not surprising that many, like Vincent, want to go back to the idyllic old days without the internet considering the statistics in (this Forbes.com article). Because of the internet, the world of work can now saturate the lives of it's victims even more: to give an indication, only two percent of American business decision makers have their weekends and nights to themselves and over half work around the clock (even weekends).

“ I am on the internet all the time, on my phone, on my laptop...Because the internet is omnipresent, people in the working world are expected to be too... no it's not about fun or communication or making our lives easier , for us it's about work, working all the time ” Vincent adds.

Clearly Vincent's words multiply in a very different way to the way mine did; no internet, no stress. A second source, (an employee of a mining company who wished to remain anonymous) during the course of the interview took pleasure in deleting 3 voice messages without listening to them. He laughed this off and admitted that in the past he had also deleted emails: “ I get hundreds a day and they're all 'important'! Sometimes I just sit there all day reading emails and replying... sometimes people from across the office send me emails... come and talk to me!”

So when we talk about the idea of a digital detox in relation to these two conflicting perspectives of what the internet actually is, we are talking about traumatising some for their own good and liberating others. We are talking about a digital detox for the willing but digital REHAB for some . It is interesting to note that most digital 'detox' destinations offering technology free packages specifically target people from the stressful world of work by virtue of targeting people who can actually afford to stay at their luxurious locations. 

I guess the rest of us addicts need to learn something from this second group of busy bees and put up our 'gone fishing' signs while we still can... Maybe learn to fish first.  

"Brand me" or our reliance on digital technology for identity-building

The week 4 lecture Social media: Brand me and the death of privacy threw light on another reason why a 'Digital Sabbath' is a frightening concept for younger people, particularly the types of people who may be reading our web feature. Our online persona is an integral part of our identity, and managing our online identities becomes a full-time self-branding project. Therefore, the concept of cutting oneself off all together provokes not only FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), but a feeling of losing a part of yourself, of ceasing to exist... in virtuality at least.

Alison Hearn in her article 'Meat, Mask, Burden' explains how the concept of self-branding has emerged from the capitalist, neoliberal, individualistic discourses which lead us to conceptualise ourselves as commodities. Ruth Page analyses how Twitter is used for the construction of self:

In line with current work in discourse analysis, the processes of self-branding and micro-celebrity understand identity as discursively constructed through interactions with others ... where social media genres are ‘technologies of subjectivity’ through which the self is written into being.

Ruth Page, "The linguistics of self-branding and micro-celebrity in Twitter" (2012: 182)

The idea of working on a 'Brand Me' or 'Me Inc.' is not confined to corporate-speak and self-branding workshops. As social media becomes more tightly woven into our normal channels of communication and relationship-building, considering the Digital Sabbath may strike fear of a loss of control. While time away from technology (particularly physically removing yourself from it) may seem luxurious and tempting, the knowledge that the online world will continue without you is enough to scare most people into staying on the hamster wheel, for fear of what may happen while they are gone.

Online Addictions – Do you take a daily Hit?

With all this talk about a digital detox, let’s take a step back and look at the pervasive, theory-driven tension between contemporary psychologists…

Do online addictions really exist?

Some have taken the alarmist notion of ‘online addictions’ very seriously. The epidemic of online problem behaviours has even coerced American psychologist, Dr Kimberley Young, to develop a counselling plan and ‘online empowerment centre.’ Young believes online addictions are very real, and include dependencies upon gaming, web surfing, consumer websites and cyberporn.

                                                 Source: http://www.edeneatseverything.com/?p=4024

But alas, other psychologists have a very different perspective.

Let’s take this article written by Dr Pamela Rutledge. She feels the media circulate an insane amount of unqualified and speculative rubbish. Essentially, the media use correlative studies as an effective excuse for stating causative inference. In other words, you can’t just call 8 hours of Internet use a day an addiction, unless you have empirical evidence and a lot of scientific leverage to validate your claims. An article worthy of copious Rutledge sneers can be found here.

So, what are some of the alleged symptoms of online media withdrawal? According to participants in a particular social media detox called Unplugged - phantom phone vibrations, a sense of panic and impending doom, and lastly, the death of your digital soul might ensue.

But hurrah - from the polarised perspectives of different scholarly opinions, here come the middle grounders…

After emailing professor of Gambling Studies, Dr Mark Griffiths, he invited me to share his comprehensive research on a few areas of concern for hyper-onlinianism (okay I made that term up). For example, Griffiths agrees there are a plethora of unsubstantiated theories developing around addictions associated with being ‘switched on.’ But he’s also given some weight to the observations of Chinese scientists, who’ve found the brain matter of traditional addicts also mirrors the brain abnormalities of excessive Internet users. Scary stuff.

 Source: http://www.thedaily.com/page/2011/07/05/070511-news-internet-brain-1-3/

However, Griffith argues that the majority of articles do not distinguish between addictions to the Internet (such as excessive chat-room use) and addictions on the Internet (for example, pre-existing addictions such as gambling, which manifest online).

Undoubtedly, the present empirical rigour which online addiction studies harbour is problematic. Needless to say, whether or not the science can be validated, there are definitely individuals who feel that studies should continue to measure just how severe online dependency has become.

Current research in the science community has dabbled with measurements such as the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale. Though imperfect for measuring all online dependencies, this scale can provide insight into how much individuals feel the need to socially bridge themselves with their online counterparts.

So should we be in a panicked flurry about our future generations and the online addictions that might await them? Perhaps. But there is no question that traditional problem behaviours will manifest themselves in ways we have never seen before.

Taking a slight tangent – a poignant reminder of just how pervasive Internet technologies are, is inescapable when we look to our toddler community. An article by Siobhan Duck reiterates the events of a recent Play School episode, where the host tweeted, blogged and emailed his foetal audience. Instead of guessing which shaped window the host will next explore, or what issues might be troubling Big Ted’s psyche this week – text savvy littlies might now have the skills to be simultaneously tweeting about the atrocities of Jemima's dress sense on any given day: #Pig-tails are so last Spring. 

       Source: 

http://www.news.com.au/technology/children-learn-the-abc-of-twitter /story-e6frfro0-1226448686016

So, Internet addictions might exist (and may even lay dormant in our future gens) – but the push for such research highlights just how many people have felt the pull of their inner digital demon. Regardless of whether or not these addictions are empirically substantiated, modern individuals are definitely opting for ways to escape the digital drone of their existence.

Here are a few realistic escape plans for your digitally bound soul – ranging from the more fancy, to those made in jest:

(1) Make a commitment to a digital detox plan, at least once a month. It could range from fancy getaway plans, which take away your beloved Internet gadgets on arrival, to requesting the family ‘honours’ Sunday as the digital Sabbath. Whichever option you choose - let this time of rest be a reminder of what the simple life was once like.

(2) Follow a simple digital diet recommendation by Daniel Sieberg. His book suggests avoiding the dreaded Tech Turd moment, i.e., don’t just dump your technology around like a piece of poo. This will quickly make places like the kitchen and restaurant tables off limits for your phone, unless you feel comfortable with metaphorically dumping a poo on a table. It’s just not good etiquette.

(3) Choose the human over the device. If you can’t remember which friend you had dinner with last night because your memory compellingly tells you that they had a computer screen as a face… you may need to check yourself before you wreck yourself… after all, we all run the risk of becoming an online addict…

I will now leave you with the wise words of Mr Sieberg - a digital demon exorcist a.k.a 'digital diet' extraordinaire...

Modern Family, 'Unplugged'

But where are we going with all this?

The ‘Digital Sabbath’ has provided ample food for thought.

To explore this issue with depth and clarity, there are four main avenues of inquiry that really seem to stand out:

Personal experiences

• Information from interviews with people who have designated themselves ‘digital sabbaths’ or have gone on ‘detoxes'

• Tapping into social media – e.g. asking over Facebook, creating a Twitter hash tag for people to share their experiences – such as Stuart Hughes, a producer for the BBC, who shared his own detox on the website and via Twitter

• Researching already existing hash tags for things like the Adbusters ‘Digital Detox’ campaign (can’t find anything – should we make our own?) and the Huffington Post’s Unplug and Recharge Challenge

•  Demographics – survey of ‘detoxers’ to find out who feels the need to switch off, why, to what extent and how they do so

Health professionals

• Psychologists and medical academics in particular, looking at the potential benefits of switching off

• Also exploring the disadvantages of switching off – e.g. increased stress when re-entering the digital world (more work to do, backlog of emails to reply to) and psychological issues as detoxers come to realise the inevitability of living in a world driven by internet media and technology.

• This article from The Daily Beast provides a fascinating alternative look at the dangers of a digital detox, while this feature from Wellbeing Australia gives an Australian perspective on the health aspects of intensive media use.

Physical controls / facilitators

• Retreats and holidays, such as the ones mentioned in the Caribbean and American wilderness; potentially the Australian equivalent, meditation retreats in the Blue Mountains, South Coast and North Coast (NSW)

• Apps, advice blogs etc. that (somewhat ironically) enable move offline

• Campaigns (solidarity) – e.g. National Day of Unplugging 2012, asking people to take (ironically) an online ‘pledge’; The Sabbath Manifesto

• Question: why do people feel a lack of control when it comes to online media and technology? – so much so that they need to have it physically removed from them by external forces? Various surveys have been conducted recently showing many people’s utter addiction to technology

Technology companies

• How do the producers of online media feel when their products – perhaps conceived optimistically as opening new avenues of communication or making lives easier – are demonised (by consumers and popular press)?

• Yet, as the New York Times article in my previous post explores, those who work at these companies are themselves engaging in ways of switching off, and considering the ethical responsibilities they have in producing seemingly ‘addictive’ products.

Help, I can't switch off!

If you're anything like me, you are probably reading this with five other tabs open, you're listening to music, and your mobile is within easy reach, natch. We are digital natives, the iGeneration, and we are always plugged in, always connected, always on. You probably check your phone first thing in the morning and last thing at night (or is that just me?) 

So when reports come out that the Internet could be rewiring our brains, rendering us unable to concentrate, making us less empathetic and more prone to depression, you've got to wonder, why do we feel like we can't switch on and off as we please? Even when we are overstimulated, overwhelmed by the online world and underperforming in the real one, we keep craving the fast pace and neverending entertainment technology gives us. To our detriment, apparently.

Source: http://www.onlinecollege.org/Multitasking

According to a survey conducted last year, 20% of Australians have checked their Facebook whilst in the bathroom, and almost 3% have checked it during sex! Something has gone terribly wrong...

Would it be possible to regain control over the way we use technology, without totally shutting ourselves off? I decide to outsource my self-control to a handy app called StayFocusd (download it here), which allows me to block my biggest sites of time-wasting at particular times of the day when I need to concentrate. 

If you attempt to change the settings, the app issues you with a challenge

It even provides a suggested list of sites to add, proving my patterns of procrastination to be embarrassingly typical. There is even the 'nuclear option', useful for approaching deadlines, which can block the entire internet for a set length of time. 

Unfortunately my new-found productivity was short-lived, and I found myself downloading a different browser just so I coul check my Facebook. Yikes. Maybe I really am an addict. Is a total techno-detox the only hope for me?

What do you do to take control over your technology usage? Do self-imposed restrictions work or does your addiction need something more drastic?