Hacker News Reader

Comment by colinmhayes | Hacker News Reader

You don't think bringing people joy is a positive impact?

Were those people not being brought joy before TikTok? Did the amount of joy in the world increase? Does it increase with every new frivolous app? If so eventually we will be overwhelmed with the pure bliss of being alive, but that does not seem to be the trend.

Yes TikTok increases the joy its users experienced, otherwise they would still be doing what they were doing before.

I do think people are much happier than they were 20 or even 10 years ago, largely thanks to the increased joy brought by better apps. Can that continue until people are "overwhelmed with the pure bliss of being alive"? No clue, doesn't seem likely, but it's certainly possible.

Then what's with all the "social media causing depression" we hear all the time, and there also being studies highlighting that, not to mention countless anecdotal stories.

E.g this study: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/216770261772337...

Suicide rates increasing because of too much bliss?

It's debatable. Tiktok like other social media could be actually causing harm by a) being addictive, b) causing mental health issues, c) ruining your brain reward system, d) giving you adhd, possibly.

Once you start scrolling there, it is very difficult to stop, and I have tried it, but I don't think at least for me, it would add any actual value to my life even if I can't stop myself from using the app.

There's other entertainment, that I would think is more healthy, meaningful and can improve you as a person, so any time spent on Tiktok, I think is straying away from that other type of media.

So Tiktok definitely has impact, but I don't see how this impact is more positive as compared to say reading books or similar, which could potentially also provide infinite entertainment, but I also improve your brain

Cocaine triggers a dopamine response (simplified, I dated someone with an addiction). Is that a positive impact? Moderation is important, as in reflection as to why you’re enjoying something and if it's healthy.

If cocaine was free I think it'd have a tremendously positive impact.

Maybe with robust social safety nets and mental health services available (Portugal model).

cocaine was cheap and easy available a century+ ago (for example the original Coca-Cola was an over-the-counter headache treating mix which contained alcohol and cocaine). Didn't lead to much positive impact. (Note: i'm for full unlimited legalization, though not because it is that good, it is just that 1.the adults have the right to practice Darwin theories and 2.the Prohibition is really bad)

Not for me it won't.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com