Self-determination is defined as acting in line with one’s values and interests, independent of external pressure. This definition suggests that individuals are self-determined, if they authentically endorse or self-author their actions and make decisions that reflect their true interests and values. Self-determination, however, is not the same concept as independence or having an alternate choice; acting autonomously does not require making different choices than external input but instead focuses on whole-heartedly endorsing one’s actions. A person can be self-determined even when acting according to external demand, provided the person fully endorses their actions (Wichmann, 2011).
Deci & Ryan (2020) the leading researchers in self-determination theory (SDT), propose three basic psychological needs that are universal to human nature across cultures and are essential to one’s sense of well-being:
The psychological need for competence, relatedness and autonomy are essential to the human mind as the body’s need for nutrients, while the capacity to be aware of these needs are essential in attaining them. Under proper conditions, these needs guide people toward more competent, vital, and socially integrated forms of behavior. Comparing those whose motivations are self-authored with those who are externally controlled in their actions shows that the former has more interest, excitement, and confidence, manifested as enhanced performance, persistence and creativity. It also shows an increase in vitality, self-esteem, and overall well-being (Ryan & Deci, 2020; Wichmann, 2011, p. 23).
SDT builds upon the assumption that humans are motivated to better themselves through competence, relatedness, and autonomy. Therefore, this research study focuses on autonomy and competence – building upon the importance of obtaining and maintaining autonomy towards self-determined pursuits as a path to competence and well-being. The importance of autonomy is also universal across cultures, regardless if cultures are characterized as individualistic, collectivistic, vertical or horizontal societies (Nalipay et al., 2020; Ryan & Deci, 2020).
Struggles with distraction behavior are increasing in complexity, especially with the exposure to personal computing technology devices on us at all times. For example, in a 2019 study by (Kushlev & Dunn, 2019), it was found that frequent phone use led parents to feel more distracted, which in turn impaired the feelings of social connection and meaning when spending time with their children. Further evidence was discovered that smartphones distract parents from a sense of social connection when spending time with their children.
Georg Frank’s (2019) “The Economy of Attention” has been gaining traction since the mid-1990s, suggesting that expanding information and access to knowledge in the information age creates a marketplace for companies to capitalize on human attention, with two popular examples as viral recommendations and content auto-play which exploit the ability to self-control and encourage over-use (Monge Roffarello et al., 2022). While many studies showcase the psychological harm of addictive social media use (Foroughi et al., 2019, 2019; Guedes et al., 2016, 2016), Facebook’s 2021 whistleblower leak reveals the company’s awareness of these harmful effects, such as the self-conducted study on Instagram’s (owned by Facebook) negative psychological effect on body image and mental health (Hemphill & Banerjee, 2021). Whistleblower Francis Haugen argues that social media companies such as Facebook cannot be dismissed as having overall positive benefits for connecting humanity when it influences the mental health of 2.8 billion users – or 60% of all internet-connect people on Earth (Haugen, 2021). Facebook’s business model is algorithmically driven, which economically incentivizes profit-driven decisions (Chivukula et al., 2019; White & Boatwright, 2020) over the safety of its users.
While the process of design aims to bring about positive outcomes to humanity by understanding contextual use, software design can employ manipulative principles to deceive users into behavior that is favourable for the stakeholder but not for the user. Users in subreddit “r/assholedesign” have been showcasing and discussing real-world examples of deceptive design strategies, where a 2019 study analyzed over a thousand posts to discover its overlap with what’s known as dark patterns. Dark patterns are a user interface interaction that deceives users, crafted intentionally to manipulate users to doing things they did not intend (M. Bhoot et al., 2020). The results show common real-world examples of nagging, obstruction, sneaking, interference, and forced action that does not benefit the user, supplanting user needs in favour of shareholder profit (Chivukula et al., 2019).
Based on a 2014 study of smartphone addiction for Taiwanese university students, the outcomes found that family and emotional stress positively influenced smartphone addiction (Chiu, 2014). This suggests that while mobile technology can be used for assistive support, smartphones can also be used in unhealthy behaviour to cope with life stressors. While it may be perceived to be entirely a personal conscious choice of indulging in intentional behaviour, this behaviour is better explained by Metzinger (2017) as mind-wandering and the loss of mental autonomy. This becomes even more difficult to address in the information age, fueled by the challenges in the economy of attention and its threat to autonomy and well-being (Docherty & Biega, 2022).
A common self-regulatory problem with goal pursuits includes the warding off of distractions. Mind-wandering is conceptualized as unintended behavior or an involuntary form of mental activity. Veto autonomy (V-autonomy) is defined as the capacity to suspend or inhibit an action voluntarily, and during mind-wandering episodes, we do not have the veto agency over our attention, focus, or thought (T. Metzinger, 2013; Schooler et al., 2011).
Regaining mental autonomy (M-autonomy) – a typical transition that healthy people experience taking place hundreds of times every day – can be achieved by constructing one’s autobiographical self-model of goal-congruency (Ludwig et al., 2020; T. K. Metzinger, 2017). This can occur through “constructing an autobiographical self-model from memories of having had autonomy, of having successfully controlled, and thereby appropriated, ongoing cognitive activity in the past, successfully making it, phenomenologically, your own activity” (Metzinger, 2013, p. 8).
Self-regulation is challenging because habits formed through reinforcement learning can contradict long-term goals. Ludwig et al. (2020) explain that a reinforced “habit loop” consists of three basic elements: trigger, behavior, and result, where circumstances can become a trigger to repeat past rewarded action even if the behavior is misaligned with long-term goals or with values. However, bringing awareness to one's subjective experience and behavior can produce a change in the valuation of learned but unhealthy behaviors, leading to self-regulatory shifts that result in sustainable behavior change without force (Ludwig et al., 2020). Ryan & Deci (2020) also suggest people must not only experience competence or efficacy but also experience their behavior as self-determined for intrinsic motivation to be in evidence.