Most probably, you’ve heard about the Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov. He studied in detail what is called classical conditioning, where when you hear the notification bell ring, you check your phone. (Haha, got you!)
Kidding aside, I got this photo below from Wikipedia, which basically sums up what classical conditioning is all about. So when I say you are like Pavlov’s dog, I mean that you act like Pavlov’s dog.
If you’ve seen a doughnuts commercial before but never tasted a doughnut, it will not appeal to you as much now that you’ve tasted what a doughnut is like. So the next time you see a commercial for doughnuts, you salivate. I think even merely talking about doughnuts right now makes you crave that combination of sugar, salt, and fat.
Another example is that when you hear the ping on your mobile shopping app’s latest sale, you mindlessly check your phone, as if by default. When you also see that red notification bubble on your social media app, you feel this urge to check for engagements. “Oh, someone liked my photo. Let me check that photo again.“
If you don’t want to be likened to Pavlov’s dog every time you receive a notification, check out this book. And learn how to use technology for the better instead of letting it use you.
jessa 