We cling to the quaint notion that technology is a neutral, passive medium waiting to be used. We tell ourselves we can master technology, choosing when to post, scroll, click or log off. Such illusions ignore the ruthless efficiency of the attention economy, which exploits basic biology to dominate our attention.
Indeed, human attention is a scarce and valuable commodity that companies compete to capture. Advertising and data collection surround consumers. Every phone app or digital device is waging a war for attention, using a collection of tools designed to win.
Tristan Harris, a former design ethicist at Google, famously described our smartphones as “slot machines.” They operate on a schedule of rewards, including notifications, likes, and other tricks, to keep us pulling the levers, hoping for a dopamine jackpot. We often find ourselves unlocking our phones to check the weather, only to end up twenty minutes later deep in a Facebook scroll. The attention game was rigged from the start to favor the platforms.
The Psychology of Color
One powerful weapon in Silicon Valley’s arsenal is color. Our brains prioritize bright, vibrant hues that signal emotion, urgency and reward. Thus, our screens often resemble a bag of spilled Skittles.
Just as the film industry uses Technicolor to manipulate audience emotion, app developers do the same. They know that orange and blue build tension and that pastels evoke calm.
What’s behind the soothing pink of the Instagram logo? It’s designed to slow our endocrine systems and relax us. The bright red of a notification badge screams for immediate attention. Colors work because we are biological organisms hardwired to respond to stimuli. As Mack McKelvey of SalientMG noted, “We don’t buy the black-and-white cereal boxes; we buy the stimulating, colorful ones.”
The Cost of Connection Addiction
Digital dependence spiked during the pandemic as we sought connection amid isolation. This reliance has given rise to a spectrum of addictions that are reshaping our lives. From the compulsive need to update social media to neglecting real-world responsibilities, the digital world is encroaching on the physical one. Gaming, online gambling and pornography are available with a click of a mouse.
Children are also tragic victims of digital aggression. Programs like “Super Crazy Kids” and “Pinkfong” use hyper-saturated colors to capture young minds and overstimulate developing brains. Up to 60 percent of teenagers show signs of phone addiction, with their dopamine receptors flooded by the constant, colorful screen noise.
The Grayscale Solution
One way to break the cycle of stimulus is elegantly simple, though arguably painful. It consists of making phones or digital devices boring.
Switching a phone’s display to grayscale strips away emotional triggers. A monochrome screen severs the positive feedback loop. Suddenly, the Instagram feed looks a lot less like a candy store and a lot more like a spreadsheet. The simple trick limits the dopamine hit, reducing the urge to scroll mindlessly.
This switch is an effective way to regain control. We need not smash the device; we need only turn down the volume. A gray phone is deliberately unappealing. It allows us to view the device as a tool rather than a source of emotional stimulation.
If we do not control our devices, they will inevitably control us. We will suffer from modern maladies such as anxiety, “text neck,” sleep disruption and the hollow stress of “doomscrolling.”
Above all, we must also live more temperate, slower lives. We must reduce our appetite for constant excitement and increase our desire for virtue. Reclaiming our attention requires acknowledging that we are targets of manipulation. Then we take steps like setting the screen to monochrome, so we can live in reality, not a matrix-like fantasy.
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