Task 10: Attention Economy
I will be the first to admit that the attention economy task was well designed. After completing some of the assigned readings and watching several videos about how the internet is not evolving at random, with a hidden goal of gaining your attention to certain products, causes, or organizations (Harris, 2017), the User Inyerface video game perfectly illustrated how these strategies work.
Much like certain physical infrastructure is designed to persuade a person to spend more time within and area or to spend money, such as casinos or shopping mall, online architecture can have a persuasive design of its own (Tufekei, 2017). The video game which was assigned, had the player/consumer complete four tasks but each had many specific tricks and dark patterns (Brignull, 2011) designed to keep you, the player/consumer, on the site longer, forcing you to click on certain drop-down boxes and re-read material very specifically instead of scanning through.
The game actually reminded me of a digital escape room I designed for another ETEC class, exits were not easy to find, and large, bright buttons were displayed drawing your attention, but like everything, the devils were in the details. The final level was the most difficult for myself, as I didn’t notice the hidden row of check boxes until I scrolled up.
During the game I most definitely felt a sense of urgency to complete the game with the time clock. I’ve used this strategy within my own teaching practice when students are completing online math games. Nothing like a little competition to get the best out of a student. Though the sense of frustration also came forth when having to find stupid little details such as double negatives built into questions, etc. As Harris (2017) notes, drawing emotions from people, positive or negative, can be quite the motivator when trying to complete a task, be it reading an article, buying a product, or clicking on a link. Companies recognize this, will deceptively add in elements which produce a certain emotion from people, and will use it to their advantage online.
When on the Internet, be aware of those trying to grab your attention and how!
References
Brignull, H. (2011). Dark Patterns: Deception vs. Honesty in UI Design. Interaction Design, Usability, 338.
Harris, T. (2017). How a handful of tech companies control billions of minds every day [Video]. TedTalk. https://www.ted.com/talks/tristan_harris_how_a_handful_of_tech_companies_control_billions_of_minds_every_day?language=en
Tufekci, Z. (2017). We’re building a dystopia just to make people click on ads [Video]. TedTalk. https://www.ted.com/talks/zeynep_tufekci_we_re_building_a_dystopia_just_to_make_people_click_on_ads?language=en