In the modern age, the internet and computers have become a common practice, especially in the business sector. Most people rely on these technologies for work, entertainment, homework, communication, or medical advice. Health studies have pointed out significant consequences like addictions with increased dependence on digital advancements. The brain changes can be related to influences caused by reliance on alcohol or drugs. In the article by Davidow, the relationship between internet use and neuroscience is discussed.
The article delineates what people do online and argues that increased dependence on the internet affects people’s brains. According to Davidow (2012), dopamine is released into the brain, and this causes an obsessive pleasure-seeking habit. The context of the article’s major claims includes facts that identify how a specific community group is affected. For instance, the author informs that players in the gaming field achieve their goals and receive a reward for new content, which causes the urge to continue playing. Achieving an objective or getting rewarded for an activity stimulates neurons in the midbrain area, releasing the neurotransmitter dopamine.
The article targets major internet users like gamblers or gamers since they are the most affected groups due to their increased urge to fulfill goals, get rewards, or meet satisfaction. Technology companies fall under this audience category because they significantly facilitate access to digital content in different varieties and designs that attract prospective consumers. Moreover, parents are targeted by the information in this resource as they are mostly concerned about their children spending many hours on computers, and this article notifies them of the possible health outcomes. Davidow appeals to these audiences’ intellect using factual information and employs examples to show the trend. For instance, he informs that obsessive-compulsive behavior linked to computer games started to grow in the 1990s (Davidow, 2012). Moreover, he asserts that there is a challenge to enforce physical barriers and limit internet use, unlike in the past when portable devices were unpopular.
The author’s tone of voice is formal and casual as he expresses the change of people’s behaviors towards negative outcomes-based technology trends. However, the author appears casual when shortening words like ‘it is’ or ‘we are’. The author’s communication style is effective because it conveys attitudes expressed through words and details that are specifically selected. For instance, Davidow is precise in facts and offers reasonable explanations about companies contributing to internet addictions.
Davidow appeals to ethos or credibility through the use of his expertise on the subject and citing an expert. For example, he quotes the words of Thomas Edison, “I find out what the world needs” (Davidow, 2012). In appealing to pathos, the author quotes an example of a recent Newsweek cover story that described the harmful effects of being in a compulsion loop (Davidow, 2012). In that way, there is a connection to the audience’s emotion concerning adverse outcomes. Moreover, the author informs that in 1957, Vance Packard identified through publication eight hidden needs (Davidow, 2012). As such, this article employs a logos approach by using factual information.
Th author express attitudes through the choice of words, figurative language, supporting evidence, or sentence structure. Davidow’s attitude can be detected through his formal tone based on word selection and supporting factual information; for example, he says 2 to 4% of gamblers are addicted (Davidow, 2012). Unfortunately, there are no opposing views identified, as the author is informative throughout the article, with supportive details and real-world examples.
Authors of informational materials tend to present ideas while supporting specific contexts, reasons, facts, or evidence to convince the audience. In the process, writers’ reasoning can be questioned to assess the reliability of the message conveyed. The article by Davidow opens with statements that communicate people’s habits and the consequences involved. The source reveals details on how technology companies are enforcing addiction to internet users, along with the trend of events in societies. Effectively, Davidow highlights the problem by comparing the past and current situation. In that way, he convincingly shows that the issue is getting worse amid the emergence of technological resources. The mode of communication employed by the author is formal and interactive, which engages targets groups such as companies, game players, gamblers, parents, and business leaders. The document ends with insights into how addition can be avoided to function happily in a virtual world. Advisably, users must commit to living without the internet.
To conclude, technology firms play a great role in exploiting the neuroscience of internet addiction through marketing, as revealed in the article. The analyzed resource informs that what people do online triggers dopamine releases in the brain’s center of pleasure and induce an obsessive behavior of engaging in more internet-based practices. The game company hooks players through rewards with new content once they attain goals, creating the urge to receive more. Moreover, Davidow asserts that the compulsive habit goes beyond games where individuals continually check their phones, emails, or stock prices through portable electronic devices driven by the dopamine effect of expecting good information.
Reference
Davidow, B. (2012). Exploiting the Neuroscience of Internet Addiction. The Atlantic. Web.