The psychology behind what makes endless scrolling so addictive

Good morning,

As you're reading this on your phone, just remember: someone, somewhere is very happy to have you looking at it. Behind that screen, an army of tech designers—and a mountain of money—worked hard to make it as gratifying as possible.

And their success? Well, it’s measured by how much time you don’t look away.

Today, we’re diving into that very topic, where psychology, tech design, and neuroscience collide.

In today's issue:

📱 Why you can’t stop scrolling
🧠 Your brain on social media
🗑️ The apps that trap

Let’s jump right into it.

— Kian Malekanian, co-founder

The psychology behind endless scrolling

Smartphones — and even more so social media apps — are designed to pull you in and keep you there.

When you catch yourself in an hour-long scroll session after “just checking,” it’s easy to blame yourself. But it’s not a lack of willpower. You’re up against features engineered to exploit your psychology, creating habits in you that make it nearly impossible to resist.

• Infinite scroll: Feeds with infinite scroll eliminate the natural pause to decide if you should keep going—no friction, no space to think before the next piece of content.

• Sly notifications: Notifications that tap into social connection —like “Your friend commented on a photo you haven’t seen”—are designed to trigger curiosity, instill a fear of missing out, and pull you back into the app.
  

• Social rewards: From Instagram likes to dating app matches, these features leverage our intrinsic need for connection, tying dopamine hits to social rewards and linking that feeling directly to their apps.
  

• Personalized content: Algorithms track your preferences, giving you exactly what keeps you hooked. It feels like a service, but it’s really about holding your attention.

But there’s one feature I want to zoom in on: “intermittent reinforcement.” 

You’ve probably heard of reinforcement theory in psychology before — you know, the studies where rats get a little treat when they act in the desired way.

There’s a famous experiment by B.F. Skinner in the 1950s. He had mice pull a lever. Sometimes they got a big treat, sometimes a small one, and other times nothing at all. He compared that to mice that got the same treat every time. 

The mice that got random rewards, pressed the lever more. And did so compulsively.

That’s intermittent reinforcement at its most basic. And one of the most addictive devices ever created was built on this psychological trick. No, not smartphones — I’m talking about slot machines. 

Slot machines mastered this on humans long before iPhones. They mixed in some other factors: solitude, flashing lights, sounds, vibrations, the never-ending promise of something better. The result? Players fall into a zombie-like state, where they’re just mindlessly pulling and pulling and scrolling (Oops — did I say scroll? I meant to say pull).

If that sounds familiar it’s because the same principle now drives the design of smartphones and social media. 

When your phone buzzes with a notification, it could be anything. It could be a spam email or a relative having a medical emergency. It could be your crush DMing you or just a boring calendar reminder. 

When you’re scrolling through videos (on TikTok or Instagram or Youtube), every swipe is like pulling that slot machine lever.

We never know when (or how big) our next reward will be. And our brains crave the hunt for it. It’s fascinating psychology, really—if it wasn’t being used against us, that is.

Personally, I hate the thought that I’m being manipulated. You see, just as tech designers are taught to use intermittent reinforcement, they’re also warned about something called reactance — the instinct to push back when we feel our freedom is being restricted.

When humans perceive that their autonomy is being limited, we experience a strong urge to resist.

Now you see the game. These systems are carefully designed to hook you, reel you in, and keep you there. There’s power in knowing this. The more aware we are of how our attention is being trapped, the more control we can take back.

Once you notice the patterns, it’s hard to unsee them — and it might just change how you scroll.

ONE BIG STUDY

Social media could be changing our brains

The study: A 2023 review looked at 28 neuroimaging studies on how problematic social media use impacts the brain.

Breaking it down: Essentially, the researchers went through all the existing studies that use brain scans to explore excessive social media use (or what they call "problematic social networking site use").

• They looked at brain regions tied to reward, attention, and impulse control, examining changes in both brain structure (physical changes like size or volume) and function (how those regions operate and connect).

The result? They found that people with problematic SNS use show reduced brain volume in areas like the ventral striatum (involved in reward) and amygdala (linked to emotions).

• Functional changes were seen too — increased brain activity in reward centers when exposed to social media cues, and abnormal connectivity in networks controlling attention and impulse control.

Why this matters: Social media isn’t just messing with our minds — it might actually be physically changing our brains. (And in somewhat similar ways to substance abuse). The researchers warn that the studies are limited, with not enough long-term evidence. Which itself is a big takeaway: we’re only scratching the surface of understanding how our phones could be changing us.

TIPS & TRICKS

Ask yourself if it sparks joy compulsion

We’re about to go Marie Kondo on your phone. Head to your home screen, tap and hold an empty area, and watch those app icons jiggle.

1. Diagnose and reorganize your apps. First, gather all the apps that actually serve a purpose: camera, maps, banking, weather, music—anything that’s a tool. Put them into a folder together (you can do this by dragging the jiggling icons on top of another on and letting go).

Second, think about which apps hook you in like a slot machine. This could be social media, dating apps, or games—apps that you know waste your time. Group these into their own folder. These slot-machine apps are your time-eaters and YOU just identified them as dangerous for your attention.

Finally, some apps are a mix of utility and distraction (for me it’s email or news). These can go in a separate folder too.

Even if you don’t take the next step below, the reorganization you’ve just done is a hack. Studies show that moving objects disrupts habits. Making an app harder to find creates a pause, giving you time to reflect before opening it. 

2. Delete the slot machine apps. These apps are probably the bulk of your screen time. Not to mention they’re designed to steal your attention. If you’re ready, delete them completely. If that feels too drastic, try removing them from your home screen to make them harder to access.

3. Find a replacement habit. Slot machine apps thrive on habit. Replace them with healthier alternatives. The urge will come to reinstall or check them and when it does you should have a plan.

• Instead of social media: try stretching, reading, doodling, playing music. 

• Instead of dating apps: play with your pet, call a friend, video call a parent.

• Instead of phone games: try a crossword puzzle, sudoku, a game of solitaire.

Everyone’s path will vary, but one thing is clear: a period of deletion is crucial. Whether you eventually reincorporate these apps or not, taking time away is the only way to truly understand their grip on your attention.

RESOURCE & RECOMMENDATIONS

• A lot of us scroll through online videos out of boredom, but a new study suggests it might actually be giving us the opposite outcome. [Guardian]

• This Reddit user shares their experience going from 50 hours a week of screen time down to just 90 minutes a week! Their approach was, as they put it, “extreme.”

• Want to learn more about “slot machine” apps? Check out this podcast conversation between Aza Raskin (the inventor of infinite scroll) and Natasha Dow Schüll (the top expert on slot machine psychology).

• Instagram is rolling out a new feature - “Teen Accounts.” Meta says it will automatically put certain restrictions on users under 16 and add parental controls. [Vox]

• What’s the most “addictive” social media app? Well, if you look at average time spent on them, these are the rankings.

COMMUNITY CORNER

Weekly challenge reminder! No phone before sleep!

Last issue, we kicked off our first weekly challenge. It’s a simple one: Just keep your phone away from your bed. And remember, it’s ongoing — so it’s not too late to join in!

P.S. If you missed our refresher on the benefits, check out our issue on sleep and phone habits!

Do you keep your phone away from your bed before you sleep?

One reader shared a great tip: “I usually charge my phone on the other side of my room. I only keep my journal and books + a clock on my bedside table. Keeping it on the other side of the room helps me get up quicker in the morning and allows me to fully relax without screens.”

This reader really has nailed it! They’ve hit the trifecta of what most experts advise: change where you charge your phone, embrace alternative wind-down activities, and keep a good old-fashioned clock by your bed.

If you haven’t tried the challenge yet, we need you to join! (No, seriously — this was my idea, and Geoff is going to roast me for eternity if it flops 😂).  Jokes aside, we really hope to build a community with Log Off, where you can share what’s working, what’s not, and maybe swap a few tips or stories along the way.

You’ve got until Monday, when we’ll be collecting feedback, so give it a try and let us know how it goes!