By Patti Wood MA, CSP
Speaker, Author and Coach
Speaker, Author and Coach
Yes, we love our cell phones. Our cell
phones can give us a high, make us feel
superior to others, comfort and advise us. There is so much to love.
Four Reasons We Love Our
Cell Phones.
1. When you interact with a
technological device you make what is labeled in the research “quick shallow decisions”,
such as, “I want this text. I don't want this text. ““I want this website it’s
interesting. I don't want this one it’s boring” “I want to take this call.” “I
don’t want to take this call.”
These quick shallow decisions lay down pathways
to the ego centers of your brain. In fact, doing so gives you a bit of a hit of
a chemical high. So when you check your phone you get a high, feel in control
and because you are getting a hit to the ego centers of the brain it makes you
feel superior to those around you. You can now understand why people are
constantly checking their phones, especially when they are stressed or have no
other activity or bored and why techno jerk doing it rudely, seems irritated
and uncomfortable to have ask him to stop interacting with his phone or gets
irritated when you want to talk with him face-to-face. Unfortunately, to
successfully make quick shallow decisions you are laying down pathways to the
ego portion of the brain and having the face-to-face interactions that lay down
pathways to the social centers of the brain. You’re laying your tracks down to
the ego center that produces that nice addictive high but interpersonal
communication becomes more difficult and may even feel like an inferior means
of interacting. Something you are "above" having to do. “
Again, when you talk to other people
face-to-face you lay down neural pathways to the social centers of your
brain. The more you interact interpersonally human to human the stronger
the pathways become. Meeting people and talking to them becomes easier and you
become more skilled and confident and make a great first impression.
I discuss this in my book, “SNAP Making the Most of
First Impressions Body Language and Charisma”
2. In addition, I have seen
that nonverbally the small portable device becomes a “comfort artifact” similar
to a “blankie” or teddy bear. Touching it and interacting with it, can calm us
and create soothing chemicals in the brain.
3. Also, for many the phone
becomes a companion so they touch it and interact with it whenever they feel
alone.
4. Finally, Siri and Google
search offer the comforts of a
all-knowing and wise parent that can tell them how to get to the grocery store, what to buy when they get there and how to cook it, and if they burn themselves while cooking how to sooth their
“Boo Boo.”
My main website is www.PattiWood.net. You can also find my
other websites, blogs and YouTube Channel by searching for Body Language
Expert.
Here
is another piece I have written on this topic.
Why
Technology is Stressing Us Out? Technology and the Brain
I was speaking at a private school
recently and the teacher updated me on some of the latest research on the brain
being done at Emory University. It is very interesting so stick with it.
- The
pruning of (reduction) neural pathways in the brain when we are young is
based on how we use our brain. The brain prunes pathways we don’t use and
keeps the neural pathways we use the most.
- The
ones laid down when we are highly focused on activities like reading a
book or having a deep conversation are deeper and have more capacity like
wide superhighways. They can handle more information overload when we are
under stress like a highway can handle more cars in commute time than a
surface road.
- The
neural pathways laid down for the quick shallow decisions we make when we
are on technology such as, “I want this email I don’t want this one.” “I
want this website in my Google search I don’t want that one.” are shallow
and thin pathways that actually break apart under stress because of their
low capacity, like a bridge could collapse if too many cars and trucks are
on it at the same time. This is kind neural pathways that young people are
forming the most.
- If
we don’t have focused attention and deep social bonds and therefore only
have the shallow, narrow, neural pathways formed with our use of
technology we have trouble handling stress. We may feel overwhelmed and
helpless and unable to make a decision. We may have panic attacks, freeze
in place, get sick or call our mommies for help. Any one that uses
technology a lot can form more shallow narrow pathways and therefore have
less ability to think and function under stress.
