Interaction with technology could be too hard to resist
By Liz Lockhart
Activities which involve interaction with technology could be harder to resist than drinking or smoking, 
according to a recently published paper. The report suggests that chatting on Facebook or Twitter, surfing the Internet and goal-directivities such as getting your work finished are the hardest desires to resist.
The research findings was presented in San Diego last week at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology’s annual meeting.
Behavioural science professor at the University of Chicago, Wilhelm Hofmann, Ph.D., said ‘Desires for media like watching television, surfing the Internet, using your iPhone, and our desire to work, that is the intrinsic desire to get work done, these are the hardest to resist.’
In this new study the willpower of 205 adults aged between 18 and 55 was studied by researchers. They were checked seven times a day via a study-provided smartphone to see whether they were experiencing or had recently experienced an urge or desire to access a technology-based activity.
The participants were assessed for the kind of desire they had experienced and also how severe the urge had been. They were also asked if they had resisted the urge or submitted to it. 10,558 responses and 7,827 episodes of an urge or desire were reported. It is not clear whether the findings can be considered as general across the world as the study was conducted in or around the German city of Wurtzburg and the findings are centred on this area alone.
Sleep was also found to be a powerful desire for many of the participants but it was easier to resist because of a lack of opportunity to sleep whilst out of the house. Other desires which occurred were sexual urges and spending impulses but these were also found to be easier to resist. The hardest desires to control are urges to interact with technology.
It was found that the urge to work, even when this conflicts with other activities such as leisure or socialising, is especially hard to resist. The reason for this, it is thought, is because ‘work can define people’s identities, dictate many aspects of daily life, and invoke penalties if important duties are shirked.’
Because of its high availability, the desire for media may be the hardest to resist, Hofmann suggests. Also because it ‘feels like it does not cost much to engage in these activities, even though one wants to resist’ Hofmann said. ‘With cigarettes and alcohol there are more costs, long-term as well as monetary, and the opportunity may not always be the right one. Even though giving in to media desires is certainly less consequential, the frequent use may still ‘steal’ a lot of people’s time.’
Hofmann added that the best way to resist undesirable urges is to not overindulge while drinking alcoholic beverages, and avoid being with or watching others participate in tempting activities.
Source: Society for Personality and Social Psychology
