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Sunny Golovine
Sunny Golovine

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Using Psychology and iOS 14's Library to Cut Down on Screentime

I read an article on Vox a few years ago that talked about how social media companies use "persuasive design" to get us to use their apps longer. This got me thinking of how I can take that same concept of "persuasive design" and turn it on it's head to get you to use your phone less, rather than more.

The idea is simple and works on Android and now iOS with iOS 14: Only one "screen" on your phone and no folder. Basically your home screen will look like this:

Home Screen Example

I found that when I used my phone with this setup, if I put an app on the home screen, I was much more likely to use it over an app that was in my library. With that I was able to influence my own subconscious decisions for the better. I found that my social media consumption went down when I put Instagram in the Library and that I was much more likely to listen to an Audiobook over Spotify during the day if I had the Audible app where Spotify normally lives in my dock. These are just some of examples, but you get the idea.

What do you think about setting up your home screen like this. Do you agree? Let me know down in the comments.

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