sustainability

Hypothesis
Towards Homo Digitalis: Important Research Issues
for Psychology and the Neurosciences at the Dawn of
the Internet of Things and the Digital Society
Christian Montag 1,2, * ID
and Sarah Diefenbach 3
1 Institute of Psychology and Education, Ulm University, 89081 Ulm, Germany
2 Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation/Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Science and
Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 611731, China
3 Department of Psychology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, 80802 Munich, Germany;
[email protected]
* Correspondence: [email protected]; Tel.: +49-731-50-26550

Received: 2 December 2017; Accepted: 30 January 2018; Published: 6 February 2018

Abstract: The present article gives an overview on central challenges humans face at the dawn of
complex digital societies and the Internet of Things (IoT), i.e., a world completely connected to the
Internet. Among the many challenges to be handled in digital societies is a growing fragmented
life style leading to loss of productivity as well as moments for self-reflection. In all this, it is of
tremendous importance to understand the impact of digital worlds on our brains and psyches and to
reveal possible unintended side-effects of technology use. Does human nature change due to constant
interactions with virtual realities? In this context, we also face the challenge to design digital worlds
according to our mammalian-emotional heritage deeply anchored in subcortical areas of the human
brain. Here, we refer to emotional needs as carved out by Panksepp’s Affective Neuroscience Theory
and how they can or cannot be fulfilled in digital worlds. Aside from a review of several key studies
dealing with the raised challenges, some first solutions to successfully meet the mentioned problems
are provided to achieve sustainable and healthy digital worlds, with whom humans can interact
carefree on a daily basis.

Keywords: fragmentation of everyday life; Internet and smartphone addiction; primary emotional
systems; neuroplasticity; human-computer-interaction; productivity; future work places; digital
depression; digital etiquette; homo digitalis

1. Background
Mankind is on the verge for a big leap forward towards new kinds of societal living forms.
In June 2017, about 50% of the current world population had access to the Internet [1]. Considering
that it is only a bit more than 25 years since the programming of the first website by Tim Bernes-Lee,
it is of unprecedented event how digital worlds have shaped our societies. From nearly everywhere,
we can access online worlds via small technological devices such as the smartphone—made popular in
2007 by Apple’s Steve Jobs.
The breathtaking transformation of human societies can be illustrated by ubiquitous access to digital
worlds and the opportunity to communicate in easy ways long distance at nearly no cost. Moreover,
humans are able to search their ways in unknown territory and distribute knowledge beyond all borders.
Right now, our society develops rapidly towards a totally Internet-connected world, where everything
from a classic household device such as the vacuum cleaner to the desktop computer is part of the Internet
of Things (IoT). Aside from this, digital transformations also impact on diverse areas of (tele-)medicine.
Among others, a recent study demonstrated that both tracking-technologies in the realm of physical

Sustainability 2018, 10, 415; doi:10.3390/su10020415 www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability

Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 2 of 21

activity enhance recovery of patients suffering from cardiovascular disease [2]. Another interesting work
pointed out the feasibility to use avatars for communication in medical settings [3].
Although most of the mentioned possibilities due to technological advances are clearly positive,
a growing number of researchers point at negative consequences due to constant interactions
with online worlds. Therefore, we discuss in the present work several challenges hindering a
sustainable development towards a healthier (in particular, less-stressful and happier) society
traversed by abundant digital streams. The described challenges start from fundamental shifts in
self-reflection/-presentation, the fragmentation of everyday life, the impact of digital worlds on the
human brain and emotional needs, to impacts on well-being, happiness, and social interaction and the
need for a digital etiquette. These topics are also entwined and their presentation order follows the
shortly explained logic in the next paragraph.
Section 2 starts with an important psychological topic from everyday life in digital societies—
namely, how the interaction with digital technologies impact on how we reflect on and present
ourselves. This is enriched by a related topic presented in Section 3, namely how everyday life is
fragmented, among others due to constant interruptions in times of abundant incoming messages
via social messenger channels such as Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and WeChat. These digital
platforms are often accessed via applications on smartphones. Note, that these channels are often
used for self-presentation issues and for many online-users mirror to some extent who we are in
terms of immediate social feedback in the form of Likes, etc. Sections 4 and 5 shed some light on
the neuroscientific basis of social media/Internet use and these topics have been already discussed
from a psychological perspective in Sections 2 and 3. In detail, Section 4 aims to characterize social
media/Internet usage on a structural/functional brain imaging level, whereas Section 5 (a) gives an
outline on potential molecular underpinnings of social media/Internet usage; and (b) aims to make
an argument for designing sustainable digital environments according to our evolutionary emotional
heritage. The present work on Homo Digitalis closes with a plea for a digital etiquette, a pleading
resulting from the arguments put forward in Sections 2–5. This work closes with a summary including
the key points of the present paper.
Some of our thoughts in the following article have in parts been covered in earlier own works and
are brought together for this article (e.g., [4–12]). This is also necessary, because some of these works
have only been published in German language. We are aware of the fact that other researchers would
emphasize different topics of relevance in the study of Homo Digitalis. Therefore, it is not the aim of
the present review to give an exhaustive overview on every possible topic in this area. This would also
not be possible in a paper as the present one given the myriad of possible areas of relevant research in
digital societies. Therefore, the chosen topics of this paper reflect to a great extent the research interests
of the authors in the last years.

2. New Forms of Self-Perception, -Reflection, and -Presentation

Given the omnipresence of the smartphone and digital media in our lives, a basic psychological
question is to what extent technology-initiated routines shape self-perception, self-reflection,
self-presentation and the impression one makes on others. In the following, we first discuss the
general theoretical concepts of the “self” related to such questions, and then the particular example of
self-presentation in the context of social media and related psychological phenomena.
The issue of self-perception in digital environments concerns the human self in the narrowest
sense, i.e., the immediate pre-reflective in first-person experience (in philosophical conceptions of the
“self” often called the “minimal self” [13]) but also the “narrative self”, referring to one’s personal
identity and continuity across time, building “a more or less coherent self (or self-image) that is
constituted with a past and a future in the various stories that we and others tell about ourselves” [13]
(p. 15). In contrast to the narrative self, the minimal self does not involve a perceptual or reflective act
of consciousness but is immediate and non-observational [13] (p. 15).
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Obviously, the opportunities for experiencing both types of self are also increasingly
shaped by digital environments. While the relevance for the narrative self is relatively evident
(e.g., representations of biographical data through postings in social media), and research demonstrated
how people actively use such opportunities to construct their identity, telling stories about oneself and
portraying a desired image to others (e.g., [14–16]), relations of digital technology to the “minimal self”
and the direct bodily experience are relatively underexplored.
First insights might be drawn from research on “self-perceptions beyond the body”. In a recent
study, Liepelt, Dolk and Hommel explored to what extent technical devices, that now mediate
what previously has been achieved by social face to face interaction (e.g., a computer mouse and
a smartphone), become incorporated into representations of the body [17]. Based on variations of
the prominent “rubber-hand illusion” (RHI) paradigm, their findings suggested that the perceived
bodily self is rather flexible. The rubber-hand illusion describes the fact that, when people are facing
a fake hand that is stroked synchronously with their own occluded hand (i.e., if there is a match of
tactile and visual information), they experience the illusion that the fake hand becomes a part of their
own body [18]. In the study by Liepelt et al., it has been shown that there were equally pronounced
effects for the rubber hand and a computer mouse lying on the table concluding that the ownership
perception may extend to non-corporeal objects [17].
A question at hand is, whether this can also be extended to non-tangible, virtual objects as
representations of the self (e.g., social media profile pictures), and to what degree the perception of
manipulations of these representations affect momentary bodily sensations.
While previous research in the domain of human-computer interaction so far considered mainly
effects for the “narrative self” and reflective judgments (e.g., effects of editing social media profiles
for self-esteem, selfies introducing a new form of self-reflection), it also requires an advanced
understanding and explicit contrast to the “minimal self” and the aspects one experiences in the present
situation. This will allow for a more proper understanding of one’s holistic experience of the self,
mediated through experiences with real as well as digital objects. If, for example, hurts (e.g., negative
comments) to selfies in social media are perceived as immediate bodily pain, this provides a more
profound understanding of the meaning of digital self-representations for peoples’ well-being and
motivations. This line of reasoning can also be related to the traditional notion of the extended self
in consumer psychology, stating that “knowingly or unknowingly, intentionally or unintentionally,
we regard our possessions as parts of ourselves” [19] (p. 139), and which has been recently extended
to the notion of the “Extended Self in a Digital World”, especially considering self-extensions and
self-presentations through dematerialized objects, digital possessions, and digital relationships [20].
On a broader level, this poses the question whether in peoples’ view on themselves and their
environment, the digital world is represented as a parallel entity, or as an integrated part of the
“real” world on equal footing.

2.1. Self-Presentation in Social Media

A particularly rich source to study the relevance and mechanisms of digital self-presentation are
social media. For many, social media have become an important source of self-esteem (e.g., [21,22]).
Given this, posting one’s life can turn into a social competition. Of course, the competition gets stronger
with the amount of (Facebook) friends: The more social media connections, the more people to compare
and compete with. In the end, the story of one’s own self told to others may gain more importance
than the moment itself, and the more extraordinary, the better. This attitude reflects what Keinan
and Kivetz denote as “experiential CV”, i.e., an experiential checklist [23] (p. 935). More specifically,
they argue that “choices of collectable or memorable (unusual, aversive, extreme) experiences lead
consumers to feel productive even when they are engaging in leisure activities, as they ‘check off’
items on an ‘experiential check list’ and build their ‘experiential CV’”. Indeed, their study shows that,
given a choice between a pleasurable and a memorable (tellable and presentable) experience, people
tend to choose the latter.
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This effect is of course well supported through social media and their in-built incentive
mechanisms such as hunting for “Likes”—the digital reward for anything—which eventually makes
the online spent time all meaningful. What basically started out as a nice (but from social media
platform designer also well calculated) idea, i.e., an opportunity for appreciation, soon can become the
ultimate source of happiness for many. This, for example, becomes clear when looking at the various
strategies that people developed to get more “Likes”. For example, a quick Google search provides
you with “best tags” and “best categories” to get more “Likes” for Instagram pictures. A very effective
tag is “like4like”, i.e., a deal saying that “if you like my picture I’ll like yours”. This of course, makes
the original picture or experience totally irrelevant. Given that many people devote much of their
lifetime to achieve a perfect presentation of their narrative selves to receive the most number of “Likes”
on social media platforms, an important challenge is to create social media platforms in a way that
they really encourage sociality and connectedness, without losing the original meaningfulness of the
moments that people share.

2.2. Psychological Mechanisms: The Example of the Selfie-Paradox

Another important endeavor is to gain a deeper understanding of the psychological functions and
mechanisms behind self-presentation in the digital world. Already a single phenomenon such as the
“selfie” reveals rich insights into the complex functions of social media as a means of self-presentation
and the formation of identity, and also the diverging views on one’s own self-presentation and the
perception by others. A selfie is a self-portrait photograph of oneself (or of oneself and other people),
taken with a (phone) camera held at arm’s length or pointed at a mirror that is usually shared through
social media [24]. Taking, posting, and viewing selfies has become a daily habit for many, especially
in the younger generation. According to a poll with 3000 people, among those aged 18–24, every
third picture taken is a selfie [25]. An obvious question is how such an intensive concern with
portraying oneself affects values in our society, or may be associated with personality traits such as
narcissism (e.g., [24,26,27]). In fact, the current discussion in and outside academia about the value and
consequences of selfies is quite diverse. While some highlight the value of selfies as a new material
for creative work and the enhanced possibilities to convey emotions (e.g., [28]), or as a trigger for
self-study and self-observation [29], others are primarily concerned about negative consequences
related to the excessive self-presentation and people’s obsession for taking the perfect selfie—such as
decreased mindfulness, focusing on photographing oneself rather than what is happening around us
and the needs of others [30], causing conflict in relationships [31], fostering body dissatisfaction [32],
narcissistic behavior [24,26,27], or in general a superficial world, with the selfie as “a prototype of
expressive inauthenticity” [33] (p. 1853). In this world of permanent documentation and digital
self-presentation, already young children seem to have forgotten (or they never learnt) to retain natural
behavior. As soon as a camera is present, they immediately take an (unnatural) photo smile, so that
candid photographs of childhood become rarities [30].
While the academic discussion already pointed out the complex positive and negative
effects potentially related to selfies and other forms of digital self-presentations, studies on the
“selfie-paradox” [34] provided a first systematic exploration of how selfie-takers themselves reflect on
the image and perceived consequences of selfies, relations to personal and societal values, and to what
extent there are differences between self- versus other judgments on own selfies.
In summary, the findings by Diefenbach and Christoforakos outline selfies as a complex
and somewhat ambiguous practice [34]: In their survey on the perceived consequences of selfies,
a considerable ratio of participants agreed to potential negative consequences of selfies, such as selfies
creating an illusionary world (67%) and threats to self-esteem (62%), whereas only small parts of the
sample acknowledged positive aspects such as independence (14%), meaning (14%), or relatedness
created through selfies (8%). Moreover, the vast majority of participants (82%) declared they would
prefer seeing more usual pictures instead of selfies in social media. Interestingly, the critical attitude
towards selfies was more strongly reflected in evaluations of others’ selfies than evaluations of one’s
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 5 of 21

own selfie pictures: while own selfies were judged as more authentic and self-ironic, others’ selfies
were judged as more self-presentational. This systematic discrepancy may be part of the explanation
for the “selfie-paradox”, where millions of online users are regularly contributing more and more
selfies to social media, despite their critical view towards selfies in general. Although being annoyed
by the narcissistic appearance of others’ selfie pictures, the single individual obviously interprets own
selfie behavior in a more generous way, and assigns attributions (authentic and self-ironic) that make
own selfies appear as more justified than those of others. In sum, this pattern seems indicative of
a classical self-serving bias, i.e., “an ego-biased attribution”, where “we try to explain our behavior
in terms that flatter us and put us in a good light” [35] (p. 213). In addition, judgments on own
versus others’ selfies may also be affected by the fundamental attribution error, i.e., a focus on internal
characteristics (character or intention) in explaining another person’s behavior in contrast to a focus on
situational factors when interpreting one’s own behavior [36]. Interestingly, it has been shown that the
typical attributional differences between actors and observers can be reversed by literally changing
one’s view, namely, when seeing one’s own behavior from another person’s perspective based on
videotapes [37]. Likewise, an interesting question for future research in the context of selfies could
be whether different framings of own selfies (e.g., judging a taken selfie in one’s picture collection
on one’s own smartphone versus judging a taken selfie as it appears in a communication partner’s
messenger window) may affect selfie attributions in a similar direction.
The example of the selfie-paradox may be seen as prototypical for many critically discussed effects
in social media (and also outside the digital world). On the one hand, humans generally might see a
(digital) development in critical ways, on the other hand, they also might neglect to see how every
individual, in particular one’s own person, contributes to such a development. Humans interpret
own behavior in a self-serving manner and disregard bidirectional influences. In the “selfie-case”,
Diefenbach and Christoforakos reported that the typical showy and narcissistic poses may just have
become an established and accepted way of how to present oneself in a selfie [34]. Meanwhile, such a
selfie might even meet our expectations of what a typical selfie looks like. In so far, a new social norm
could have been established.
From the individual’s point of view, one may actually pick the showy pose just “for fun” without
further serious intent and a touch of self-irony. However, each showy selfie pose may also serve
as an invitation for others to imitate that pose (and possibly justifying it with the same idea of
self-irony). This might result in an escalating process shaping the aforementioned social norms. From a
psychological perspective, the opportunity for self-presentation without an obvious revelation of
self-presentational needs, may be part of the secret of their success. As Diefenbach and Christoforakos
conclude: what is “here called the selfie paradox and selfie bias could also be a key factor for their
popularity” [34]: On the one hand, selfies provide a lightweight possibility for self-presentation,
where people can strategically adjust and experiment with their digital self-presentation and the
impression they make on others. On the other hand, selfies provide a somewhat ambiguous form
of self-presentation that can be still considered as playful and does not urge the selfie-taker to feel
narcissistic. On the contrary, showy selfie poses may even be interpreted as self-irony, at least by the
selfie-takers themselves.

2.3. Escalating Processes in Digital Self-Presentations

One can of course question whether selfies or an increasingly self-presentational world are
a serious problem worth to be discussed here. However, independent of single phenomenon
such as a selfie, the example reveals several challenges related to the increasing role of digital
environments as a starting point for self-perception, reflection and presentation and mutual reactions
to such presentations.
In a more general manner, findings such as from the reviewed selfie-research hint at the challenge
that despite many persons see negative repercussions as a consequence of a certain behavior, people
often may promote (knowing or unknowingly) to the dissemination of such behavior themselves
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 6 of 21

because of their biased interpretation of their own behavior. While this is not an exclusive problem of
the digital world, digital environments make it even more relevant. Being connected with “the whole
world”, a single individual’s behavior gets exponential effects and can quickly result in escalating
processes on large-scale level. Another reason for conflicts and misunderstandings within statements
and self-presentations in digital worlds is that, for many contexts, there are no established rules yet.
While the general freedom for self-expression can be seen as a positive achievement of the Internet era,
we more and more become aware that the Internet and social media also provide an environment for
the latent development of non-desired consequences. Taken together, one of the challenges lies in an
acknowledgment/understanding of the fundamental role of digital worlds in everyday interactions.
Although at first glance a simple selfie behavior seems to be rather harmless, such behavior represents
part of a fundamental shift towards a complex digital society dramatically influencing how humans
interact on a daily basis.

3. Fragmentation of Everyday Life

According to statista.com [38], currently more than two billion humans use a smartphone.
Although this powerful computer device without doubt facilitated many activities of everyday life,
our private and work lives have become more and more fragmented not only due to a constant influx
of messages via social media channels such as WhatsApp or WeChat, but also due to an enormous
amount of e-mails absorbing our attention. It has been put forward earlier that we forget to live the
moment because of the constant distraction by manifold digital devices [12]. Although smart usage of
smartphones and related devices such as tablets can enhance productivity, we believe that the “true”
association between smartphone usage and productivity resembles an inverted U-function. If used
smart and in the right amount smartphone usage can enhance productivity, but crossing a still to be
defined threshold smartphone usage decreases productivity (see also [39]). A high load of incoming
messages fragmenting the work process might illustrate such an approximate threshold.
Duke and Montag provided first empirical evidence for the idea that smartphone addiction
(hence excessive use of the smartphone) is inversely linked to self-reported productivity [7]. They also
put forward that this effect might be in parts explained by the factor high number of daily interruptions
(in this work, perhaps not optimally defined by the loss of hours on the smartphone every day;
note that estimating the exact number of daily interruptions on smartphones via self-report is a task
nearly impossible to be achieved. Future studies need to directly track this on the smartphones
(see new developments in the field of Psychoinformatics [40])). Why should daily interruptions play
an important role to understand loss of productivity?

3.1. A Short Introduction to the Flow Concept

A prominent psychological framework to understand this idea is called the flow-concept.
The flow-concept originally has been introduced by Csíkszentmihályi and describes a psychological
state of high productivity and positive affect, but also time distortions, to name a few characteristics [41].
While experiencing a state of flow, humans are totally absorbed into the task at hand, while forgetting
about time and space around them. An important prerequisite to experience flow is the match between
the ability of a person and the difficulty of a given task. Imagine: If you have to follow a task at work,
where your own skills do not match the difficulty of the task at hand, this can either lead to boredom
(the task is too simple for you) or to anxiety (when the task is too complicated). Both mismatches will
hinder a person to enter the flow channel (see Figure 1).
While experiencing a state of flow, humans are totally absorbed into the task at hand, while
forgetting about time and space around them. An important prerequisite to experience flow is the
match between the ability of a person and the difficulty of a given task. Imagine: If you have to
follow a task at work, where your own skills do not match the difficulty of the task at hand, this can
either lead2018,
Sustainability to 10,
boredom
415 (the task is too simple for you) or to anxiety (when the task is7 oftoo 21
complicated). Both mismatches will hinder a person to enter the flow channel (see Figure 1).

Figure
Figure 1.
1. The
The Flow
Flow Model
Model adapted
adapted from
from Csíkszentmihályi
Csíkszentmihályi [41]
[41] (p.
(p. 74).
74).

Further constituents to achieve a state of flow represent a clear structure/goal of the task at
hand (including an immediate feedback; see [42]). Of relevance, another prerequisite to enter the
flow channel and “to get into the zone” is a high focus on the task at hand, hence a concentrated
mind. In this context, it has been shown that even short disruptions such as 2.8 s can derail the train
of thought as presented in Altmann et al. [43]. Therefore, constant incoming messages via diverse
technological devices might hinder entering the flow-zone. To outline this a bit further: Although
smartphone usage easily can absorb a person’s attention and result in a state of flow, this often might be
counter-productive, in particular when more important jobs have to be accomplished. Please see also
works by Lin et al. demonstrating the possibility of experiencing time distortions on smartphones [44].
Ironically, the success of Facebook can also be linked to flow experiences while browsing Facebook
profiles [45]. Insofar, the flow experience at work might be hindered by experiencing flow and losing
time on Facebook. In sum, future research endeavors need to come up with solutions to better provide
humans with productive work environments fostering states of flow at work.

3.2. Counteracting Fragmentation in Work Settings

Several ideas have been already put forward to reduce fragmentation of everyday life and to
better cope with a growing number of digital messages coming in via many channels. Among others
Kushlev and Dunn provided first evidence that answering e-mails at defined time points (and not
everywhere and always) reduces stress and heightens well-being [46]. In line with this, quitting
Facebook use for just one week also elevated life satisfaction and emotional well-being [47]. Moreover,
Montag et al. provided data which underline the importance to use classic zeitgebers such as a real
alarm clock in the bedroom or a classic wristwatch (no digital iWatch or similar product) in order to
not turn to the smartphone for checking the time [48]. It has been reported by many persons that
instead of checking the time on the smartphone, they end up doing a different task on their phones.
In a way, our attention is often getting hijacked by the smartphone. Even better, after such a phone
session to check the time, we often still do not know the current time, because we forgot to check
it. Finally, new work by Ward et al. suggests that just a smartphone lying on the desk reduces the
available cognitive resources and distracts us from the work task at hand [49]. In short, structuring
daily life in times of information overload is more important than ever.
As about 36–40% of the investigated smartphone users also reported using the smartphone in
the last five minutes before going to bed and in the first five minutes after getting up [48], it becomes
obvious that humans are in need for “digital free-zones” in order to get enough sleep and start the
new day fresh at the work place. Not surprisingly, both Internet addiction and its sibling smartphone
addiction (see [8] for an explanation on the overlap of the terms) has been associated with poorer sleep
quality/duration (e.g., [50,51]). Note that a study by Lanaj et al. showed that the here described effects
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 8 of 21

are bit more complex though [52]. Checking e-mails in the evening led only to a loss of productivity
the next morning when participants of this study reported low control over their jobs.
To end this section: Smartphones represent a powerful technology changing our societies at
rapid pace. With the fast distribution of the IoT, new solutions need to be established to provide
workspaces, where we still can concentrate and be creative. Sometimes to become creative might also
mean to be idle. Research on mind-wandering demonstrated that this kind of mental activity can
enhance creative thought [53]. Therefore, too much usage of technological devices, in particular as a
mean to distract oneself in situations such as waiting for the bus or on a commute, might undermine
creative thinking. As mentioned in the beginning, IoT describes a world completely connected to
the Internet. Here, things starting from the fridge in the kitchen to the toothbrush in the bathroom
all will be connected to Internet. Insofar, we live more in more in digital worlds, not only when
interacting with a classic computer or the smartphone as outlined earlier as a prime example of current
human-computer-interaction (HCI) interaction.

4. The Impact of Digital Worlds on the Human Brain

One very timely research endeavor deals with the investigation of the impact of digital worlds
on our brains. Do digital worlds even have the potential to change our brain structure and brain
functionality (hence also our psyches)? Will the current ongoing technological/digital revolutions have
a lasting imprint on our mammalian—human nature? The answer to this question is very likely a “Yes”.
However, given the lack of studies in the field dealing with this exact question, the nature of observable
changes will be a matter for strong debate for decades to come. The following section summarizes
some initial arguments, which, in our opinion, make it likely that such brain changes occur.

4.1. Neuroplasticity of the Human Brain

First, abundant evidence from the neurosciences demonstrated over many years that our brains
are not as hard-wired as thought for a long time. Our brain is characterized by being neuroplastic
(e.g., [54]). This means that our daily experiences and our manifold interactions with diverse
environments have a lasting impact on human’s most precious organ. Among others, this has
been demonstrated convincingly by studies using structural magnetic resonance imaging. Here,
researchers both investigate individual differences in (gray matter) brain volumes [55] and white
matter architecture [56]. Such investigations are conducted on whole brain level, but more often also
on smaller brain areas such as amygdala or hippocampus to better understand which brain areas
exactly are shaped by a certain environmental influence.
Arguably, one of the most prominent studies in structural brain imaging (seen from a historical
point of view) has been conducted by Maguire et al. [57]. This group of researchers demonstrated
in their work that taxi drivers passing the straining orientation test called “The Knowledge” in
London were associated with higher gray matter volumes of the posterior hippocampus compared
to control persons. The (posterior) hippocampus is also known as navigational system of our brain
(see also an earlier work by Maguire et al. [58]). Meanwhile, a follow-up study also brought the
evidence that growth of this brain area can be causally linked to successful learning of London’s street
map [59]. Abundant other examples exist demonstrating principles of neuroplasticity. Among these
are the investigation of learning to juggle [60], learning for the medical exam [61], learning a foreign
language [62], learning an instrument [63,64] and using mindfulness techniques [65]. Notably, changes
due to different environmental exposures have also been shown on a functional brain level (e.g., see
studies on psychotherapy/mindfulness [66–68] or functional brain changes due to blindness [69]).
Deriving from such studies, one could sum up our brain’s rewiring processes by the (oversimplifying)
slogan “Use it or lose it”. This means that when we learn something, the relevant brain regions for
the practiced activity is trained like a muscle. Hence, a neuroplastic brain represents in many ways
a normal and healthy state, something also made clear by nobel-prize carrier Eric Kandel, famous
for his works on long term potentiation in the aplysia (e.g., [70]). In an interview he mentioned:
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 9 of 21

“My colleagues and I have found out that when an animal learns something, there is an alteration in
the communication between nerve cells and, thus, the brain changes .... So you have an anatomically
different brain after you have learned something than the brain you had before” [71]. Learning is
re-wiring your brain. This means that your brain will have also slightly have changed after reading
this article. Admittedly, currently, we largely lack the methods to demonstrate this on a molecular level
in the living human brain. Aside from the positive training effects, detrimental effects on brain volume
and also functions need to be mentioned. Such have been observed in many psychopathological states
including reductions of hippocampal regions in depressed patients [72] and brain volume reductions
in dementias such as Alzheimer’s disease (e.g., [73,74]). Let us switch to our initial question: Will
interactions with digital worlds shape our brains?

4.2. Interaction with Digital Worlds and Brain Changes

To answer this question, a large body of studies is noteworthy investigating associations between
individual differences in tendencies towards Internet addiction and brain structure/function (for an
overview see [75] or the compendium by Montag and Reuter [76]). Unfortunately, only few studies
investigated if some of these Internet addiction-brain correlates are causally linked to Internet
(over-)use. This would support our notion that digital worlds or better the interaction with digital
worlds shape our brains and minds. A new study by Zhou, Montag et al. indeed provides support
for the idea that digital worlds shape our brain [77]. In this study, it could be demonstrated that one
hour of gaming of a well-known massive multi-player online role play game (MMORPG) over the
time course of six weeks led to reduction of gray matter volume in the left orbitofrontal cortex, a brain
region known to play a role in motivational and emotion regulation processes (e.g., [78,79]). At the
beginning of the study, gaming experts (compared with gaming novices) were already associated with
lower gray matter volume of the right OFC. Intriguingly, lower volumes of the right OFC were also
associated with more addictive tendencies towards playing this game.
In other realms, and aside from Internet Gaming Disorder (see also the inclusion of the term as an
emerging disorder in section III of DSM-5 [80]), also growing efforts can be seen to map brain correlates
of digital world usage. Given that about two billion persons use Facebook [81] and about 800 million
humans use Instagram [82], the investigation of these platforms’ effects on our brains without doubt
represents an important and timely research endeavor. While many researchers deal with the question
of whether Facebook usage even leads to depressive symptoms (see next section), first studies
elucidated the mechanisms why so many humans spend much of their precious spare-time on these
social online platforms. Aside from a review by Ryan et al. presenting different motives for Facebook
usage (“relationship maintenance, passing time, entertainment, and companionship”, [83] p. 133),
the neurosciences provided evidence that striatal activations including the nucleus accumbens
represent a very prominent region of the brain to understand its response in the anticipation of
reward in form of “Likes”. New studies by Sherman et al. underline the importance of striatal activity
when participants of their studies were presented with own posted pictures from the Instagram
platform receiving either many or only a few “Likes” [84,85]. Support for the role of the nucleus
accumbens in Facebook usage comes from a recent brain structure study linking lower volumes of the
nucleus accumbens to higher frequency and longer staying on the Facebook application as directly
tracked on smartphones [86]. Days ago, a study has been accepted [87] demonstrating that the brain’s
subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) gray matter volume is inversely linked to WeChat addiction,
maybe the most important messenger app in Asia (about one billion users). The ACC plays a pivotal
role in addiction research and lower ACC volumes have also been observed in substance dependent
addiction (e.g., [88]). All presented brain imaging studies on social media usage did not reveal insights
about potential causal changes due to spending (too) much time on platforms such as Facebook.
For example, one question urgently to be answered is as follows: Do lower volumes of the ventral
striatum’s nucleus accumbens represent a vulnerability factor for spending too much time on Facebook
or does this already resemble a consequence of overboarding usage? Filling the void in a slightly
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 10 of 21

different framework, Gindrat et al. provided compelling evidence that daily smartphone usage indeed
shapes the human brain [89]. The authors came in their EEG study to the conclusion that “Our results
suggest that repetitive movements on the smooth touchscreen reshaped sensory processing from the
hand and that the thumb representation was updated daily depending on its use. We propose that
cortical sensory processing in the contemporary brain is continuously shaped by the use of personal
digital technology” [89] (p. 109).
Comparable to the mentioned studies in the field of neuroplasticity, it seems that the daily
interaction with10,
Sustainability 2018, digital
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PEER REVIEW 10 of 21
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5. What Are Our Emotional Needs in a Digital Society?

Aside from the question how digital environments shape our brains, an important research
question deals with the question how we should design and create digital environments under
consideration of our evolutionary emotional heritage.

5.1. A Short Introduction to Panksepp’s Affective Neuroscience Theory

Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 11 of 21

5. What Are Our Emotional Needs in a Digital Society?

Aside from the question how digital environments shape our brains, an important research
question deals with the question how we should design and create digital environments under
consideration of our evolutionary emotional heritage.

5.1. A Short Introduction to Panksepp’s Affective Neuroscience Theory

According to the prominent Affective Neuroscience Theory (ANT) of Jaak Panksepp, across
the mammalian brain seven primary emotional systems have been homologously conserved [100].
These primal emotions represent tools for survival and dysbalances in neural circuitries underlying
these basic emotions have been considered as sources of psychiatric disorders such as depression
(see [101–103]). Jaak Panksepp dedicated his life career to the mapping of neuroanatomies underlying
primal emotions by means of electrical stimulation of the brain and psychopharmacological
challenges [104].
The seven primary emotions are called SEEKING, LUST, CARE and PLAY (positive emotions)
and FEAR, SADNESS, and ANGER (negative emotions) (these are written in capital letters to not
confound them with same sounding terms in the literature) [105]. The underlying neuroanatomies
and molecules can be found in Montag and Panksepp [106]. Each primal emotion serves an important
function with SEEKING being the neural circuit linked to exploration behavior mirroring our “Go Get
It-System” (getting resources), LUST being of relevance for reproduction of our species, CARE as
the emotional neural circuitry of relevance for nurturing one’s own offspring so that they eventually
also can have families when having grown up and finally the PLAY system of high relevance for
learning social competencies in childhood and motoric skills. On the negative emotional side an
in-built FEAR system signals our organisms a dangerous situation and fuels us with energy to get out
of the danger zone. A SADNESS circuit is deeply anchored in all mammals, because we have the need
for companionship (sapiens is stronger in groups) and in particular rely on strong social support in
childhood (human children cannot survive without support of their caregivers). The SADNESS circuit
is also called “Separation Distress” circuit as its activity is triggered by losing a loved one, being alone
or as a child when the caregiver is out of sight. This results in a SADNESS (PANIC) reaction (crying)
signaling to our closest kin our need for help. Finally, an ANGER/RAGE circuit, deeply rooted in our
ancient mammalian brain, is (sometimes easily) triggered by situations of (strong) frustrations or in
the animal world in situation of territorial conflict (see for an overview [101]; see also links between
high ANGER and vengefulness [107]).

5.2. Interaction of Primary Emotional Systems with Digital Worlds

All these systems can interact with digital worlds and we will give some examples for such
interactions in this section. First, diverse content exists on the world wide web to fulfill our digital
needs, at least at first sight. Humans can act out their PLAYful tendencies by playing Internet games,
they can choose to follow sexual desires by the consumption of online pornography or searching for a
real mate via digital platforms such as Tinder or similar dating channels (LUST). The need for being
CAREd for might be provided by self-help groups dealing with countless topics speaking to nearly
everyone in need. Clearly, all this is accompanied by SEEKING activity, providing energy to follow
these activities (it is the “Go Get It” system energizing us). On the other side, negative effects can also
be stimulated by interactions with online worlds. A FEAR response might be elicited by both viewing
gruesome content on video channel platforms, but also in a total different area of digital developments,
outlined as follows: For many, the technological progress happens at a too quick pace and humans
FEAR to not be able to hold up with these developments. With the rapid development of artificial
intelligence, tremendous efforts will be in need to be invested to hold a tight grip on FEAR responses
towards a faster and faster developing society. The emotion of SADNESS also has been shown to
play an important role in the interaction of digital worlds. Abundant evidence demonstrates that
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 12 of 21

overusage of digital channels is strongly linked to depression (see next sentence), whereas SADNESS
is well-known to be the primary emotion most closely linked to depression [103]. Both Internet and
smartphone addiction have been shown to be tightly linked with ADHD/depression [50,108,109]
and lower life satisfaction [110–112], although it is still unclear if depression is a causal factor for
overusing digital worlds or a consequence of being online. In the opinion of the authors ultimately
both causal chains are imaginable and likely to be true. For sad and lonely persons usage of social
messenger platforms such as Facebook might provide companionship, but on the other hand also
elicit envy. Social comparison might then backfire and also lead to stronger depression tendencies.
See also the earlier part of our article, where we highlighted tendencies of humans to present the “best”
parts of their lives online and thereby only presenting an artificial or only very small part of their
identity. Finally, the ANGER response is also common when interacting with online digital worlds.
In this context, the concept of Technostress needs to be considered [113,114]. Imagine yourself working
on a document and having not saved your work for hours. Then, a computer breakdown happens.
Alternatively, imagine that your operating system is working super-slow, while you are in a hurry.
All this all too commonly results in an ANGER response. In this context, we also refer to new ideas on
how to handle technostress using a stress-sensitive adaptive enterprise system [115].
Before coming to the next paragraph, dealing with the design of work places, etc. according to
our emotional needs, we point to a limitation of the present section as we only deal with Panksepp’s
AN theory, which arguably presents a rather narrow scope in the realm of emotion theories. Clearly
other important emotion theories exist, which could be applied to human-computer-interaction
(e.g., affect control theory [116]). Nevertheless, we demonstrated in a recent article why an AN
framework is in particular useful for a neuroscientific study of technology use: In Table 12 of the
work by Montag et al., a detailed roadmap is provided helping to provide researchers with abundant
transmitter/neuropeptide candidates to be tested underlying emotional aspects of human-computer
interaction [117]. To our knowledge such a roadmap has not been provided by other emotion theories.
In so far the present Section 5 can be easily also brought together with Section 4 of the present work,
where the impact of digital worlds on the human brain has been discussed on a structural/functional
brain level. ANT will in particular be able to guide the molecular study of human-machine-interaction.
To illustrate this with an example: it is well known that the neuropeptide oxytocin plays an important
role for the primary emotions of SADNESS and CARE. If a study demonstrates that SADNESS/CARE
might elicit certain usage patterns in the online world (or be a result of such an interaction), the study
of oxytocin might illuminate mechanisms underlying this kind of HCI on molecular level.

5.3. Designing Virtual/Digital Worlds According to Our Emotional Needs

If we take a step back now, we believe that it is time and of utmost importance to design digital
worlds according to our emotional needs. On the one hand, it needs to be made sure that digital work
spaces, online platforms and future developments in AI are designed in a way to not activate negative
primary emotions deeply anchored in the ancestral parts of our brains. Activation of our ancient
negative primary emotional systems results in negative affect and therefore counteracts our well-being.
Progress towards a healthy and less stressful digital society can only be successful, when humans will
get the impression that such a progress in digital areas is made transparent (think also about data
privacy issues) and society at least aims to respect and include all citizens in this design process without
leaving someone behind. In this context, see also a new work by Sindermann et al. (not published yet)
assessing the attitude towards artificial intelligence in Germany, UK and China demonstrating that
most of the study’s participants are somewhat indecisive in their attitude against AI [please contact
author C.M. for more information]. Digital worlds have to be designed in ways that they bear few
frustration potential and take into account the fact that we are all social beings. Many will state that
some aims have been achieved already, because platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp and WeChat
are unbelievable successful (and these are “social” platforms). It should be reminded though that these
platforms only do their job in parts well. Otherwise, usage of Facebook & Co. (Menlo Park, CA, USA)
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 13 of 21

would not result or go along with negative affect for many users. In particular, posts eliciting envious
emotions in the perceiving person (perhaps via social comparison) might be linked to depressive
symptoms. Hunting for Likes has been described as another problem in an earlier section of the present
work. Moreover, our needs will always be to some extent lived out in an analogous way. If you imagine
that something really bad happened in your life, would you prefer a supporting smiley via a digital
message or a real hug? The neurosciences demonstrated the powerful impact of real interactions and
human touch on our brain chemistries including the bonding hormone oxytocin [118,119].

6. “Digital Depression” and “Digital Etiquette”

Technology pervades all aspects of our lives, and exerts continuous impact on thinking, feeling
and social interaction. In contrast to impairments of cognitive abilities (“Digital Dementia”) or
physiological side-effects of technology use (e.g., effects of the typical smartphone body posture such
as neckpain, backache, shallow breathing), the term “Digital Depression” [4] underlines threats to
subjective well-being and happiness. In addition to “depression” in a pathological sense, as discussed
in the last section, the term as used by Diefenbach and Ullrich is rather meant in a metaphorical sense,
relating to the question of whether social media, fitness trackers, and continuous smartphone use
are actually in line with one’s emotional and psychological needs, and in which cases the gradual
development of routines around technology use may have led to effects that, if closely considered,
nobody ever wanted [4].

6.1. Technology-Mediated Behavior in Conflict with Social Norms

In fact, smartphone mediated behavior often breaks up established social norms, for example the
commitment to fixed appointments versus the nowadays convenient last minute cancelling/delay of a
date via WhatsApp. If I know I can tell my date I will be late, I will pay a little less effort to make it in
time. Likewise, it is just one click to send a message into a group chat (“sorry friends—I won’t make it
tonight”), which is obviously a lower barrier than calling all those friends, explaining why one has to
cancel the appointment and being confronted with their disappointment on the phone.
Another example is the more and more rare time of full attention for the conversation partner,
often undermined by parallel smartphone use. In a recent survey on smartphone usage routines
(in parallel to a study by the Pew research center from 2014), 97% reported daily usage for surfing
the web, and 87% reported smartphone usage as their most recent social activity (e.g., meetings with
friends) [6]. Interestingly, only 11% see their own smartphone usage in social settings as critical, seeing
that phone use takes a lot of their attention. In contrast, the smartphone use by others is seen as
more critical, 87% say that the phone use of others hurts the conversation or atmosphere “sometimes”
to “frequently”. What seems easily manageable and no problem for one’s own person (i.e., paying
attention to the direct conversation partner(s) and the phone in parallel), is perceived as annoying and
a sign of disrespect if others show the same behavior. Please see the parallels with these biased views
of one’s own behavior as discussed earlier with posting selfies.
To experience the omnipresent and often destructive influence of smartphones on conversational
atmosphere, one often just needs to look around in a café or other places where people usually meet
for social interaction. “Digital communication comes first” seems to have become an accepted habit,
especially among younger users. Any impulse from the digital world—a phone call, a smartphone
push notification, a text message—evokes instant reaction. You read the message, and probably even
answer it immediately. This happens independent of the actual importance of the received message,
the situation you are in, and independent of what your direct conversation partner may feel like if
your attention repeatedly shifts away from an emotional meaningful moment to this smart piece of
technology. Thus, it is no wonder that studies already demonstrated that a silent phone lying on the
table has negative impacts on the conversation atmosphere [120]. The threat is always present—the
conversation could be interrupted any time. Relating to such patterns of conflicts between social norms
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 14 of 21

and technology-mediated behavioral routines, Diefenbach et al. coined the term of “disrespectful
technologies” [5].

6.2. Finding Healthy Routines of Technology Use: The Example of WhatsApp Usage
Indeed, finding healthy routines of technology use actually poses a challenge to people.
For example, a recent study on the instant messaging service WhatsApp [121] revealed that the
extent of the perceived communication quality/well-being depends on the individual usage routines
and settings, such as single chats (consisting of only two communication partners) versus group
chats with more than two people, or the usage of features such as “Last Seen” and “Read Receipts”.
The “Last Seen” feature indicates the last time a communication partner opened WhatsApp. It thus
allows the user to monitor others’ communication behavior and provides the ground for implicit cues
and interpretations (e.g., although the communication partner was online and could have seen my
message, he or she has not answered my message yet). The “Read Receipts” feature provides even
more definite information about the communication partner’s WhatsApp behavior: two blue tick
marks indicate that the communication partner has received and read the message. Given that such
features are activated, it further plays a role whether users actively use these features, or whether
they have turned it on but are not looking when someone was last online or if someone had already
read their message (passive usage). One result of the study by Blabst and Diefenbach was that
perceived stress of participants with active usage was significantly higher than perceived stress of
participants with passive usage of “Read Receipts” [121]. Those findings are in line with previous
studies [122,123], reporting that actively looking if a sent message has already been read, can create an
atmosphere of stress. Another interesting finding was that especially participants who reported to
feel stressed through WhatsApp features such as “Last Seen” and “Read Receipts”, provided more
negative evaluations of WhatsApp usage. More specifically, those who tended to feel stressed through
WhatsApp features also tended to perceive WhatsApp usage as not having done anything meaningful
and a waste of time [121]. It is thus not the technology per se but rather the individual usage which
can cause symptoms of “Digital Depression”.

6.3. Physiological and Psychological Symptoms of “Digital Depression”

Finally, technology-usage related phenomena on a physiological level may often be considered
in relation to psychological aspects as a symptom of “Digital Depression”. For example, in a
study by Drouin et al., 89% of the surveyed participants report the experience of the “phantom
vibration syndrome”, i.e., feeling your phone is ringing or vibrating even though it is not [124]. On a
psychological level, phantom vibrations may result from the fear to miss something important or
even feel cut-off from the world, if not being in constant digital contact. Of note, this concept has
been coined as Fear of Missing Out (abbreviation: Fomo; [125]). As Drouin et al. discuss, phantom
vibrations may just be seen as a “contemporary versions of social sensitivity or social anxiety” and
also related to personality traits [124] (p. 1496). In their study, participants higher in conscientiousness
reported fewer vibrations and the strength of emotions associated with text messages was a positive
predictor of experienced bothersomeness of phantom vibrations. This is also in line with other
research demonstrating that low conscientiousness is associated with longer WhatsApp usage [92]
and higher Internet/smartphone addiction [126]. Participants who have stronger emotional reactions
to text messages (e.g., feeling disappointed when messages are not received) are more bothered by
phantom vibrations, just as they are more likely to have negative psychological consequences of
text message dependency (e.g., thinking life is empty without text messages), it is argued by the
authors. Consequently, the authors conclude that this kind of emotional reactivity could also be
related to “other types perceptual “hallucinations”, such as thinking that someone is calling out your
name or, among those with anxiety sensitivity, perceiving innocuous sensory stimuli as potentially
threatening” [124] (p. 1496). The vast majority of participants (91%) in the study by Drouin and
colleagues, however, considered phantom vibrations to be “only a little” or “not at all” bothersome,
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 15 of 21

pointing at the question whether the physiological phenomenon per se must actually be considered as
pathological [124].

6.4. A Call for a Digital Etiquette

Altogether, the most relevant point seems how the constant smartphone usage affects our everyday
life well-being and fosters or undermines opportunities for self-reflection and positive development.
As outlined above, the fragmentation of everyday life poses a challenge to productivity and creative
thinking. This not only pertains task fulfillment and work-related productivity but also personal
development. In a world where unfilled time slots have totally vanished, there is less boredom and
therefore less and less chance for self-reflection: in a moment where meaningful or uncomfortable
questions could pop up, one has possibly already entered WhatsApp or YouTube (see also [127]).
Thus, while we cannot (and possibly should not) totally escape from technology, an important
challenge is to reflect on one’s personal way of use and deliberate limitations, thereby taking
responsibility for one’s own and others’ wellbeing. Regarding the social dimension, it also needs a
conscious reflection on a digital etiquette, i.e., the integration of technology in established culture,
the adequate use of technology in social settings or intentionally technology-free areas. This aspect not
only refers to peoples’ private lives and well-being, but is also highly relevant for the working domain,
where digital etiquette becomes part of the business culture design (see also [6]).

7. Conclusions and Limitations

Creating sustainable work places and zones to relax and fulfill our emotional urges in complex
digital societies will present a major challenge for researchers across the globe. Naturally, we only
could concentrate on a few challenges of digital societies and the IoT in this work. Another not further
discussed challenge concerns data protection issues, because, with the ubiquitous IoT, everything
we do will leave a trace. The emerging discipline of Psychoinformatics demonstrated already in first
studies what insights can be derived from digital traces of the IoT with respect to psychodiagnostics
on individual level (see for a review [40,128,129]; see also a recent interesting work on the potential of
psychological targeting [130] perhaps in parts also endangering democratic processes [131]). To present
the reader with a short summary of the most important research avenues to be tackled in the near
future, according to this review/hypothesis paper, we add the following short bullet points:

• Understand how new forms of self-perception, -reflection, and –presentation affect social communication
• Find strategies to foster flow experiences in times of a fragmented life style
• Investigate how the interaction with digital worlds shape human brains and how we can hinder
detrimental effects on the human brain
• Design digital worlds according to our emotional evolutionary heritage to foster well-being in
digital societies
• Find meaningful rules for social communication in times of abundant available access to
digital distractors

Acknowledgments: The position of C.M. is funded by a Heisenberg grant awarded to him by the German
Research Foundation (DFG, MO2363/3-2).
Author Contributions: C.M. and S.D. conceived the structure of the present review; C.M. wrote Sections 1 and 3–5,
whereas S.D. wrote Sections 2 and 6. Both C.M. and S.D. critically revised the complete manuscript.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.
Sustainability 2018, 10, 415 16 of 21

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