Addiction & problematic use

"It may be a problem if Facebook seems rewarding based on the principle of unpredictability, while the inherent value of the reward is lacking"

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"Simply put, we need to 'push' [teens] more."

[Primary thesis]: "We need to make instagram an 'urgent app' again for US teens" …

Unnamed employee

Youth TargetingProfits over Safety

"In a given week, approximately 5.9 million people leave Facebook [because they spent too much time on it, or planned to return from a temporary leave]"

Have we made people addicted to Facebook?" "The flow is fairly aggressive as we try to stop people from leaving Facebook. …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"56% of IG teens surveyed say it's difficult to manage how much time they spend on social media and 14% say IG makes it worse"

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"Perceived low control over Instagram use is a common problem (-20-40% of youth IG users)"

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"In academic experiments, smartphone notifications caused inattention and hyperactivity among teens, and they reduced productivity and well-being."

In this study, we find that that 3.1% of Facebook users in the U.S. experience serious problems with sleep, work performance, or relationships that they attribute to Facebook and …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"As session count increases, more and more people report feeling like they spend a lot of time on Facebook or report sleep problems."

Past research on problematic use on Facebook, as well as prior academic research suggests the existence of a U-shaped curve, where people with a moderate number of sessions report …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"Teens are hooked despite how it makes them feel... Instagram is addictive, and time-spend on platform is having a negative impact on mental health"

Instagram is an inevitable and unavoidable component of teens lives. Teens can't switch off from Instagram even if they want to." …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

Appearance comparisons are made much more frequently on IG vs competitors and often lead to body image issues

████: "CWB [Central Well-Being] is advocating that if we want to pursue NAC [Negative Appearance Comparison] measurement, it should go to the VP level" Justin Cheng: "1. …

Justin Cheng and names withheld in filing

Profits over SafetyConcealment

"(1) teens feel addicted to IG and feel a pressure to be present, (2) like addicts, they feel that they are unable to stop themselves from being on IG, and (3) the tools we currently have aren't effective at limiting their time on the ap[p]"

Wendy Gross: "The feedback, essentially, is that (1) teens feel addicted to IG and feel a pressure to be present, (2) like addicts, they feel that they are unable to stop …

Wendy Gross and names withheld in filing

KnowledgeConcealment

"There are reasons to worry about self-control and use of our products."

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"Teens who spend more than 3 hours/day on social media face double the risk of poor mental health outcomes"

Scientific evidence suggests that harmful content exposure as well as excessive and problematic social media use primary areas for concern." …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"[T]he majority of clinicians believe that social media can be addictive"

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

Perceived low control over social media use is highest for youth and young adults

Problematic Use Definition 1. A perceived lack of control over usage of a technology or social media platform and 2. …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"Facebook may be rewarding and habit-forming"

There is no evidence that Facebook use meets the clinical definition of 'addiction.' The way the media portrays Facebook 'addiction' can be exaggerated and inaccurate. …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"Rates of perceived low control are similar for youth and adults, with low attentiveness (~34-40%) more common than low capability (13-20%)"

Users' perceived control can be validly measured across age cohorts with questions assessing low attentiveness around platform use (i.e., spending more time, checking, and …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"The prevalence of reported problematic use is highest among teens and young adults"

We have defined 'problematic use' as the combination of lack of control + negative life impact from FB use" …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"18.3% of WAU IG teens (over one week) exhibit behaviors associated with problematic use overall"

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

Investment in teen-specific Problematic Use was "Mid-Low," teen-specific SSI was "Low-Mid," and eating disorders was "Low"

Unnamed employee

Profits over Safety

"We can use the 'addiction' framework as a useful orienting point to understand common Facebook problems"

We have defined 'problematic use' as the combination of lack of control + negative life impact from FB use …

Unnamed employee

Knowledge

"Teens blame Instagram for increases in the rates of anxiety and depression among teens"

Unnamed employee

Knowledge