Dating app addiction? This phenomenon exists among some people and therefore it affects them.

Like all addictions, it all started with taste. This is how the story of Alison Carlin Hodgins begins. who at just 18 years old began his adventure in the world of online dating. And, like any other young adult, he did it with innocence and some cynicism. In his conversation with huffington post, the woman comments: “I was 18, I was in my best friend’s basement, slightly drunk on cheap wine, when I created a profile for her as part of a joke.” However, few people knew Hodgins that after a while this joke would become the center of his life.

Shortly thereafter, Alison began trying online dating on her own. Like millions of stories in the world Hodgins downloaded Tinder at night but later regretted it. Matches in the morning and proceed to delete your profile. This action was followed by a promise to “no return”, but, as with addictions, his words did not last long.

However, at that time Hodgins was still relatively healthy. In fact, not long after she began her online dating adventure and swiped right and left, the woman found a partner. This relationship lasted one year. and it’s at the end when the real story begins.

Tug of war game

“After the breakup, I mourned the relationship before downloading a new app…” Alison explains. how he managed to meet two more potential couples after the event. Unfortunately, luck was not on his side. “I dated everyone for two months.”

“After every breakup, I told myself that I would need some time. I wanted to focus on myself. I would think about who I was and what I wanted. I wouldn’t download any dating apps.” However, two weeks later, Alison woke up with her phone in her hands and an open app store with the word “Date”. in the search bar.

But why do we depend on dating apps?

Of course, it would be unfair to blame Alison herself for her addiction to dating apps. After all, they are a medium like any other satisfy one of the most important human needs: the desire for communication.

In fact, it is this need that makes us “addicted” to these applications. The brain is an organ with impressive plasticity, capable of changing its chemical composition in response to certain experiences, and love and affection are among the strongest what you can experience.

According to Dr. Michael Merzenich, Chief Scientist at Posit Science, this is one of the most significant experiences that someone can have in their life. “Naturally, these experiences can cause some of the biggest changes in the brain that a person can experience,” comments the scientist. Global DatingInsights.

In addition to his discussion of the effect of love on the human brain, Merzenich also conducted research on the effect of dating apps on it. Here he explains what happens when we start swiping left and right in apps like Tinder and why.

“We know that when a person does something useful, like going on a date or meeting a fun person, the brain releases dopamine, a neurochemical associated with reward. Interestingly, the brain does not need to be rewarded for releasing dopamine; if the brain expects a reward to come in the future, it also releases dopamine.

For this reason, when a person begins to slip between potential Matches on a dating app, the brain automatically anticipates the thrill and reward of a date and releases dopamine.”

Dr. Michael Merzenich, Chief Scientist, Posit Science

But Merzenich is not the only one who has managed to connect this phenomenon with the human contour. Dr. Judson Brewer in his book A thirsty mind, also offers a look at this effect. Here Brewer explains how social applications of any type activate the same “circuit” as substances such as alcohol, cocaine, heroin, oxycodone and much more. Fortunately, in most cases, a dose of Tinder does not have the damaging effects of the substances mentioned here.

Natasha Doe Schull, anthropologist and author of a book linking technology addiction, discuss the similarities between slot machines and dating apps. As Shul comments Daily BeastAddiction to these apps works similarly to gambling addiction.

“Parallels exist in how experiences are formatted, with or without rewards. If you don’t know what you’ll get and when, it leads to more assertive behavior, which in turn is the most addictive.

You build that expectation, you build that expectation, and when you get rewarded, a kind of liberation happens. Jackpot, ding-ding-ding coincidence“.

Natasha Doe Schull, anthropologist

A problem that affects some more than others

Poll conducted Coincidence, confirms the number of users who constantly return to the application. According to the network, 15% of single people use Tinder. they report feeling addicted to the process looking for a date.

Most of this population is male, with a 97% higher chance of becoming addicted. Meanwhile, women make up the smallest part; but they are 54% more likely to suffer from exhaustion after this process.

A third of users of these applications have never gone on a date with someone they met in them. To do this, it all comes down to a kind of “video game”. In an article for BBC, Lucy Vine describes the experience as “earning points in a video game”.. “When I’m bored, it’s a pastime in front of the TV,” she says.

David Greenfield, professor of psychiatry at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine, agrees with the reasoning of Natasha Doe Schull and Lucy Vine.. In addition, he adds that in most of these cases, there is nothing we can do to rid ourselves of this feeling of dependency.

Dopamine is a powerful neurotransmitter that is wired into survival systems like food and sex, so we’re talking about resisting something that’s been biologically evolving in the brain over tens of thousands of years.

David Greenfield is professor of psychiatry at the University of Connecticut School of Medicine. VICE

For this reason, one solution may lie in a deep understanding of what having more options won’t make us happier. In fact, according to Greenfield, “it’s even more stressful for us.”