One video after another that keeps millions of people in the app for hours and hours. Simply swipe across the screen to enter a spiral of continuous, infinite content. This is the essence of the social network TikTok.
“Drugs, instant sensations, wanting everything immediately…” says Marc Masip, psychologist at ‘Desconect@’, about the sensations of TikTok users.
Users already say that the social network is addictive, but now the company itself recognizes this too. “There is evidence that TikTok knew how addictive its platform is“, says journalist Sylvia Goodman.
An internal document revealed by the Kentucky American Public Radio assures that they only need 35 minutes for a person to become addicted. Addiction is said to come from watching 260 videos in a row. “More vulnerable young people, brains not developed for content, this is due to the algorithm…”, Masip points out the consequences of being addicted to the application.
The document is part of the class-action lawsuit launched by 14 U.S. attorneys general who sued the Chinese company for its role, they say, in the deterioration of the mental health of minors. “TikTok intentionally and deliberately manipulated and harmed young people through its platform,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said.
And there are more and more patients suffering from depression, anxiety and social phobia as a result of consuming social media. And according to the report revealed, TikTok has reportedly decided to limit preventive measures for fear of a drop in users.
