The European Parliament wants to ban addictive techniques in apps

The MPs want to limit the use of addictive techniques such as infinite scrolling in apps. The proposed regulations are mainly aimed at social media, with Parliament recognizing that normal self-discipline is not always up to the task, with all the negative consequences it entails.

The European Parliament is calling for an end to the addictive technologies and applications that companies use to keep people glued to the small screen. These are so-called dark patterns and deliberately addictive functionality. App developers and psychologists work together for social media companies, but also publishers FremiumGames to subconsciously encourage users to behave in a certain way. In games, the intention may be to direct the player towards microtransactions, while on social media the intention is to show as many advertisements as possible so that people want to keep scrolling.

Bad for mental health

“No self-discipline is a match for Big Tech’s bag of tricks, filled with armies of designers and psychologists designed to keep you glued to the screen,” says MEP Kim Van Sparrentak (Netherlands – Greens/EFA). “If we don’t take action now, the practices will impact the mental health and brain development of future generations.”

The addictive techniques and unconscious control of dark patterns are good for app developers’ coffers, but are detrimental to users, whose inherent human vulnerabilities are professionally exploited. The European Parliament is concerned about negative consequences such as a decline in concentration, cognitive performance, an increase in stress, depression and burnout symptoms, as well as the restriction of physical activity, which promotes smartphone addiction. The impact on the health of minors is certainly a cause for concern. Parliament is therefore calling for more research.

Concrete actions

Specifically, the European Parliament wants the EU to develop laws that must protect citizens, even if this may come at the expense of social media platforms’ profits. Several mechanisms are taken into account:

• Addictive techniques like endless scrolling and autoplay need to go
• The focus must shift from the attention economy to ethical design
• There must be a digital focus in order not to be disturbed
• All online services and products must be safe for children.

Parliament clarifies some points, for example pointing out that app notifications must be disabled by default. This way, you won’t automatically receive a notification to restart an addictive game because there’s supposedly a reward waiting. Social media feeds should again be chronological to make it easier to see that you’ve seen all the new things. There should also be accessible application screen time summaries, digital locks to limit usage for those who want it, and a black and white mode that is less tempting.

The European Parliament does not place all responsibility on the developers and also wants to raise awareness among citizens through campaigns. These should promote safer and healthier online habits.

Addiction is everywhere

Earlier this year, Digimeter reported that 42 percent of Flemish people feel dependent or addicted to their smartphone. National and international studies repeatedly show that people find it difficult to resist the consciously addictive stimuli of applications. For its initiative, the European Parliament itself refers to research results that establish a connection between the problematic use of smartphones and the Internet and mental health problems. One in four young people between the ages of 16 and 24 are now said to display problematic smartphone behavior that exhibits addictive characteristics.

Parliament’s plan does not yet contain any legislation. Parliamentarians are now calling on the European Commission to work on a legal framework. If this does not happen, Parliament itself exercises its right to initiate legislation. With 545 votes in favor, 61 abstentions and almost twelve votes against, the call has already met with broad support in Parliament.

In recent years, the EU has taken a global leadership role in regulating the technology industry through leading legislation. Few will argue that rules like GDPR, NIS2 and the recently passed AI law are perfect, but there is agreement that Europe is always taking important and big steps in the right direction.