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You keep using "addicting" in a misleading sense. Facebook does not optimize for addiction, it optimizes for engagement. The addiction that makes nicotine and o

You keep using "addicting" in a misleading sense. Facebook does not optimize for addiction, it optimizes for engagement. The addiction that makes nicotine and other substances so harmful refers to the physiological & psychological dependence these substances create. Repeat engagement is not the same as actual addiction and it's misleading to conflate them. Coffee companies do the same, their goal is that you repeatedly come back to consume more of their coffee, decaf or not. The more frequently and voraciously customers consume their coffee, the more money they make from coffee sales. You think they don't also market test coffee variations for popularity? Almost every company in the world optimizes for more; more consumption, more usage, more sales. The idea that Facebook is somehow in a league of its own for how it optimizes is clearly not true.

rglullis 6y ago
Whatever you need to tell yourself if it helps you sleep at night... I am using the term in the same sense you are. People feel dependent on their social networks, their apps and even declare to feel things akin to withdrawal syndrome when they are away from their devices or haven't checked their networks for updates. And again, the fact that "other companies do similar things" is not an excuse, less so due to the fact that Facebook has way more reach and uses technology that can amplify their effectiveness infinitely. I don't have Starbucks baristas knocking on my door offering me coffee, I do have Facebook listening to conversations inside my house because of my wife's phone.