SCROLL NO MO
The behavior I chose to target was scroll holes. I find myself at least 1-2 times per day scrolling mindlessly on social media with very little idea of when I started and what prompted me to check in the first place. I measured myself on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, and came away with some interesting insights. Before I show my models, here’s some immediate trends:
When I scroll:
- In bed! This is the place where I seem to consume almost all media (social, movies, TV, books). It’s the place I retreat to where mindlessness abounds.
- Alone! Or feeling alone! When I’m not socializing or in an environment where I don’t feel included, I frequently retreat into my phone, which leads to scrolling time.
- Bookends of days. This is associated with being in bed, but I frequently scroll pretty immediately after waking up and right before putting my phone down for sleep. One strategy I’m trying (with some success) is reading before bed for at least 30 minutes to be off my phone and improve my mood. In the mornings, forcing myself to immediately get out of bed might stop some of this scrolling.
Models:
Reflections:
Because I tracked my scrolling at the end of each session (“oh shit, I’ve been scrolling for a while, let me record that and stop”), I didn’t do anything to change the behavior but made myself feel more guilty than normal. In order to change this habit, I might try a few approaches, including deleting the apps (this is what got me to heavily limit Facebook usage) and setting time limits on social media usage (guilting before would be more effective than after). Next time, aside from wanting to track for a longer period, I’d be curious how writing down my schedule for the day beforehand might influence usage or reveal trends, like certain amounts of down time correlating with scrolling or a longer scroll hole.
