Is social media addictive? How it keeps you clicking and the harms it can cause

"For years, big tech companies have placed the burden of managing screen time squarely on individuals and parents, operating on the assumption that capturing human attention is fair game. But the social media sands may slowly be shifting. A test-case jury trial in Los Angeles is accusing big tech companies of creating "addiction machines". While TikTok and Snapchat have already settled with the 20-year-old plaintiff, Meta's CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, is due to give evidence in the courtroom this week."

"The European Commission recently issued a preliminary ruling against TikTok, stating that the app's design - with features such as infinite scroll and autoplay - breaches the EU Digital Services Act. One industry expert told the BBC that the problem is "no longer just about toxic content, it's about toxic design". Meta and other defendants have historically argued that their platforms are communication tools, not traps, and that "addiction" is a mischaracterisation of high engagement."

""I think it's important to differentiate between clinical addiction and problematic use," Instagram chief Adam Mosseri testified in the LA court. He noted that the field of psychology does not classify social media addiction as an official diagnosis. Tech giants maintain that users and parents have the agency and tools to manage screen time. However, a growing body of academic research suggests features like infinite scrolling, autoplay and push notifications are engineered to override human self-control."

Big tech companies have long placed responsibility for managing screen time on individuals and parents, assuming capturing human attention is acceptable. A Los Angeles jury trial accuses major platforms of creating "addiction machines", with TikTok and Snapchat settling and Meta's CEO set to testify. The European Commission issued a preliminary ruling that TikTok's design features, including infinite scroll and autoplay, breach the EU Digital Services Act. Executives contend platforms are communication tools and reject "addiction" as a label. Academic research links design features like infinite scroll, autoplay and push notifications to overridden self-control. Interviews and online analysis identified a state labeled "automated attachment" among heavy users.

Read at The Conversation