If you ask most people what the biggest problems facing society are, they'll name things like inequality, climate change, political polarization. I have a different answer: our utter captivation by and addiction to the steady dopamine drip of social media, shallow entertainment and 24/7 distraction. It's an issue hiding in plain sight, so ubiquitous we barely notice it. But I believe our enslavement to the dopamine machine is at the root of many afflictions plaguing the modern world.
Humans are hardwired to seek rewards. Our brain's mesolimbic dopamine pathway lights up when we anticipate and receive a prize, whether a sugary snack, a social success, or a "like" on a Facebook post. This reward circuitry evolved to motivate behaviors advantageous for survival and reproduction in our ancestral environment - eating high-calorie foods, earning status and mates, etc.
The problem is, technology has now hijacked these dopamine circuits with supernormal stimuli and rewards completely disconnected from reproductive fitness or meaningful achievement. Social media plugs directly into our brains' reward centers, delivering 24/7 access to ego rewards like likes and follows. Online pornography and video games offer sexual stimuli and thrilling challenges more intense than anything in the natural world. Fast food, processed junk and drugs like cocaine overwhelm our brain with dopamine hits that would have been unattainable for our ancestors. Smartphones and apps are literally engineered to hook and hold our attention with intermittent variable rewards, maximizing the addictive dopamine pull.
We are surrounded by unnatural superstimuli and trapped in a vortex of artificial dopamine-triggering temptations no human brain evolved to resist. Like rats in a Skinner box, we're being controlled by variable reward schedules that keep us clicking, scrolling, consuming, chasing the next dopamine hit.
This would be bad enough on an individual level. Chronic overstimulation of our reward circuits is a recipe for addiction and desensitization to healthy dopaminergic pleasures from socializing, exercise, natural foods, real accomplishments. Obesity, ADHD, anxiety, depression, compulsive behaviors, motivation and erectile dysfunction are potential side effects of a hyperdopaminergic lifestyle.
But I'd argue the costs to society at large are even more corrosive and far-reaching. Dopamine culture is the opposite of a culture of actual achievement and discipline. It's a culture of taking the path of least resistance to cheap pleasures, of avoiding pain, effort and sacrifice. A culture of consuming instead of creating. Of manipulating perception over changing reality. Of ego-stroking trivialities over truly impressive feats. Of addiction over self-control. Of superficial status games and mimetic desire over originality and substance.
Most people are so caught in the dopamine web they don't even recognize there's a problem. The idea of rejecting the rewards of social media or video games seems to them as unthinkable as not eating. Many pundits praise the internet and smartphones for the instant connectivity and access to information they provide. I see these as Trojan horses smuggling in a mental virus that commandeers our reward circuitry and makes us dependent and docile.
If you doubt the gravity or difficulty of this issue, a simple experiment: put away your smartphone for a week. Completely avoid Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and whatever other social media you use. See how quickly your brain starts fiending for those dopamine hits you're used to getting every few minutes. Observe the irritability and restlessness when that reward drip is cut off. That should give you a visceral sense of how insidiously these stimuli have hijacked your brain and how hard it is to regain control.
In an ideal world, we would dismantle all the technologies of addiction that are profiting from manipulating our dopamine circuits. Social media as it exists today would be shut down, video games would be heavily restricted, fast food would be regulated like tobacco, online porn would disappear, hard drugs would remain illegal. Of course, that's never going to happen. The economic forces driving more immersive and addictive tech are too powerful. The cat is out of the bag and it's not going back in.
On a society-wide level, the genie is not going back in the bottle. But on an individual level, you can still choose what role these forces play in your life. You can decide whether to remain a helpless rat pushing dopamine levers or to build some discipline and wrest control of your brain's reward centers. Here are a few suggestions for how you can rebel against the culture of cheap dopamine and shallow stimulus:
1) Go on a full dopamine fast for at least a week. No social media, video games, fast food, drugs, online porn, gambling or any other artificial high. This will likely be extremely uncomfortable, maybe even physically painful at first. But it's an important step to reset your brain and prove to yourself you can break the hold these things have on you.
2) After a reset, reintroduce potential dopamine hits selectively and thoughtfully. You don't have to totally abstain forever, but be intentional about what you let back in. I haven't had social media accounts in 15 years and don't miss them. I play video games only occasionally and in short bursts. Stay away from things you know are pure poisons like cigarettes and cocaine. Strictly ration things you decide to keep consuming. Your time and attention are precious - don't let algorithm-fueled dopamine slots capture them by default.
3) Turn your dopamine faucet down overall and get your kicks from natural highs: exercise, time in nature, real-life friends, creative challenges, learning new skills, overcoming adversity. Even simple things like delicious natural foods, humor, music, affection, and sunlight stimulate healthy dopamine release. Not only will natural rewards re-sensitize your brain after a constant deluge of superstimuli, but they have a host of positive side effects - unlike the negative side effects of most artificial highs.
4) Cultivate a sense of pride in your self-control and freedom from addiction. Whenever you feel that restless itch for stimulation and instant gratification, don't think "I want it but can't have it" - think "I don't want or need that cheap dopamine hit." Savor the feeling of focusing on what's truly important to you instead of getting dragged around by algorithm-induced impulses.
5) Fill your time with meaningful real-world activities and projects so you're not tempted to fill a void with artificial stimulation. There's no secret here except actually doing the work and having something to point to afterward. Pursue goals so compelling that internet distractions seem boring and sad in comparison. Easier said than done, but there's no substitute for giving a damn.
6) Surround yourself with others who share your values and support your self-discipline. If all your friends are chasing clout on TikTok and bragging about their social media scores, you'll have a hard time escaping that black hole. Find people passionate about creation, not just consumption. The reward of impressing them with your substantive achievements will outweigh the loss of ego candy online.
7) Pay attention to what you pay attention to. Our minds are shaped by whatever we focus on. What we choose to notice and think about changes our brain on a physical level. Your worldview and even your sense of self are molded by how you use your awareness. If you spend 8 hours a day doomscrolling social media and playing video games, don't be surprised if you become depressed and cynical with the attention span of a gnat. If you dedicate your time to worthwhile challenges and an appreciation of the sublime, your mind will follow suit.
None of this will be easy, especially in a world of wall-to-wall ads and algorithms designed to keep you hooked and scrolling. It takes a lot of effort and discipline to swim against the tide of mainstream dopamine culture. But the stakes could not be higher. The forces of distraction threaten to neuter and neutralize an entire generation, turning us into impulsive infants incapable of doing difficult things or delaying gratification. They pose an existential threat not just to your focus and mental health, but to your agency and humanity.
As long as your brain is beholden to the dopamine puppet masters, you'll be unable to fully exercise your autonomy and self-control. You'll remain a slave to impulse and momentary stimulation instead of living deliberately according to your values. In a world of noise, conquering your attention is the first step to being free.
So consider this a call to arms in the liberation of your mind. Resist the cheap temptations. Take back control of your brain's reward centers. Pursue hard challenges and sustainable satisfactions instead of pushing dopamine buttons. It won't be comfortable at first, but neither is anything else worth doing. Life is more than a series of superficial ego boosts. Don't spend yours as a rat in the great Skinner box.