Digital Detox: The Politics of Disconnecting

Trine Syvertsen explores the phenomenon of digital detox, where users take a break from digital media or adopt measures to limit smartphone and social media use. She discusses how media industries intensify the quest for attention, how companies and governments team up to get everybody online, and how the main responsibility for managing online risks and problems are placed on the users' shoulders. Digital detoxing is about sustaining face-to-face conversations, better work-life-balance, a deeper connection with nature, and more meaningful interpersonal relationships.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 168 pages
Publication date: 30 March 2020
Publisher: Emerald Publishing Limited

Social media and smartphones have come under fire for their alleged addictive nature, which can lead to the deterioration of personal relationships, reduced productivity, and invasions of privacy. In her book, Trine Syvertsen delves into the concept of digital detox, where individuals choose to take a break from digital media or implement strategies to limit their smartphone and social media usage. Through extensive research, documentation, media analysis, and interviews with media users, Syvertsen explores how media industries exacerbate the pursuit of attention, how companies and governments collaborate to ensure widespread internet access, and how the burden of managing online risks and challenges often falls on the users themselves.

She offers a comprehensive account of how users reduce their online engagement by employing time limits, restrictions on smartphone use, productivity apps, and the embrace of analogue media. Syvertsen demonstrates how digital detoxing shares similarities with other self-help practices such as mindfulness, decluttering, and simple living, positioning it within a culture of self-optimization. However, digital detox goes beyond these practices, emphasizing the importance of maintaining face-to-face conversations, achieving a better work-life balance, fostering a deeper connection with nature, and cultivating more meaningful interpersonal relationships.

Digital Detox is a valuable resource that provides a wealth of examples, analyses, and stories to shed light on the growing phenomenon of digital detox and disconnection. It serves as a guide to understanding why digital detox has become a topic of interest, how it is practiced, what it reveals about the state of media industries, and the ways in which individuals express resistance in the 21st century. By exploring these aspects, the book offers valuable insights into the impact of technology on our lives and provides practical strategies for reclaiming a healthier relationship with digital media.

Weight: 192g
Dimension: 129 x 197 x 10 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781787693425