Smartphones and Captology

We need to constantly be aware of the fact that when we are engaging with our smartphones, our smartphones are actually engaging with us. Understanding this reality will help us and our kids stay on guard to the ways that our smartphones are designed to influence our beliefs and behaviors. Captology is a field of research that studies how computers and smartphones can be used as persuasive technologies. A researcher by the name of BJ Fogg coined the term captology back in 1996 as an acronym which stands for “computers as persuasive technologies.” Experts in the field are looking for ways to capture and keep our attention so that our attitudes and behaviors can then be influenced and changed. We need to be especially mindful of the ways that advertising seizes on this field of research to get us to purchase and become addicted to products. When you use your smartphone today, be mindful of what’s going on behind the scenes, and teach your kids to do the same.