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demonstrate popularity through high friend, follower, and like counts can lead children to
<br /> accept friend requests from strangers, putting them at risk of predation.
<br /> Variable reward design features
<br /> One objective of persuasive design is to reduce friction so that platforms are easier to use, and
<br /> so young people will keep using them. Low-friction variable rewards are highly effective at
<br /> maximizing the amount of time users spend on the service.The psychology that renders these
<br /> features effective is based on research that predates the internet by many years, beginning
<br /> with experiments by renowned psychologist B.F. Skinner in the early 20th century.74 Research
<br /> by Skinner and others revealed that when test subjects — both humans and other animals—are
<br /> rewarded unpredictably for a given action, they will engage in the action for a longer period of
<br /> time than if the reward is predictable.75 Specifically, the brain generates more dopamine in
<br /> response to an uncertain reward than in response to an expected and reliable one.71 The
<br /> tendency of variable rewards to drive compulsive behavior is sometimes referred to as the
<br /> "Vegas Effect," and is the primary mechanism at work in slot machines.77In the words of Nir
<br /> Eyal, a consumer psychology expert who wrote the popular industry how-to Hooked: How to
<br /> Build Habit-Forming Products, "[v]ariable schedules of reward are one of the most powerful
<br /> tools that companies use to hook users.1178
<br /> One common example of variable rewards design features is the infinite or endless scroll
<br /> mechanism with variable content. When a platform uses endless scroll, a user is continuously
<br /> fed new pieces of content as they scroll down a feed or page, and they never know what might
<br /> appear next. Harvard researchers Emily Weinstein and Carrie James explain in their recent book
<br /> on teens and technology: "Apps like TikTok have an endless database of content to offer users.
<br /> Some videos are pointless or boring or upsetting; others give a fleeting reward in the form of
<br /> funny, relatable, or compelling content.1179 The pursuit of the next "rewarding" piece of content
<br /> keeps users scrolling. As one 16-year-old told Weinstein and James, Snapchat is "so addictive
<br /> because it's so easy to go on to the next thing.... And you never know what amazing thing could
<br /> be on the next Story, and all you have to do is tap once and you get to the next thing."80
<br /> 74 J. E.Staddon &D.T.Cerutti,Operant Conditioning,54 Annual Review of Psychology 115 (2003),
<br /> https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.54.101601.145124; B. F.Skinner, Two Types of Conditioned Reflex:A Reply
<br /> to Konorski and Miller, 16 J.Gen. Psychology,272(1937), https:Hdoi.org/10.1080/00221309.1937.9917951.
<br /> 75 Laura MacPherson,A Deep Dive into Variable Designs and How to Use Them, Design Li (Nov.8,2018),
<br /> https:Hdesignii.co/blog/a-deep-dive-on-variable-rewards-and-how-to-use-them/; Mike Brooks, The "Vegas Effect"
<br /> of Our Screens, Psychol.Today(Jan.4,2019), https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/tech-happy-
<br /> 1 ife/201901/th e-vega s-effect-our-screens.
<br /> 76 Anna Hartford& Dan J.Stein,Attentional Harms and Digital Inequalities,9 JMIR Mental Health 2,3 (Feb. 11,
<br /> 2022),.!2.:t.a.a...//.a,a.1. . .::" .:.. . .:.!.:.. ..."n..::.i�.!..I�..::.pc vL35'147504/.
<br /> 77 Mike Brooks, The "Vegas Effect"of Our Screens, Psychol.Today(Jan.4,2019),
<br /> 17GG,Ls.//www ya ryc17o1ogytoday.g2 rl,/u.ss/]2Igp Gec11-1702Vey-IIfP1- 20 .9CY1/G17e-vP aS-.PffecG-ou.sr-scrPP�IS.
<br /> 78 Nir Eyal, The Hook Model:How to Manufacture Desire in 4 Steps, Nir and Far, https://www.nirandfar.com/how-
<br /> to-manufacture-desire/.
<br /> 79 Emily Weinstein &Carrie James, Behind Their Screens:What Teens Are Facing(And Adults Are Missing), MIT
<br /> Press,at 33 (2022);see also GCFGlobal.org,Digital Media Literacy: Why We Can't Stop Scrolling,
<br /> https:Hedu.gcfglobal.org/en/digita I-media-literacy/why-we-cant-stop-scrolling/1/.
<br /> 80 Id. at 34.
<br /> Testimony of Josh Galin, Fairplay, February 14, 2023 12
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