As UC Berkeley economist Stefano DellaVigna and Bocconi University economist Eliana La Ferrara note, it is necessary to not only consider the direct effects of exposure to social media, but the crowding out of other activities, known as the substitution effect. It is difficult to determine the impact attention-grabbing sites can have on the economy and society as a whole. However, when we focus our attention glued to our phones, we forgo other opportunities. We can scroll endlessly on social media, and upon finishing a video we will always have a new one to auto-play. Furthermore, social media sites’ “explore pages” throw endless information at us, hoping that one picture, hashtag or video will interest us. “following,” “likes,” and “subscribers”- comparison is easy. As our online social media presence is defined by numbers-number of “friends,” “followers” vs. Anyone can set up an account and have the opportunity for their presence to be seen by millions, but this also increases the pressure to capture more of the increasingly scarce resources of attention. Thereafter, anything they post will appear on our feeds. Once we see a platform or user we like, we “subscribe” to them on YouTube, “become friends” with them on Facebook, or “follow” them on Instagram or Twitter. However, social media keeps us on the platform longer and wanting more.

Once we obtain what we want, we leave the site. When we go on the internet, we typically have a goal in mind, like finding an answer to a question or conducting research. As for the general public, it has never been easier to garner such personal levels of attention though means like social media. But what distinguishes the present day is that technological advances have made an overwhelming amount of information available, strategically aimed at capturing our attention. Our attention has always been limited, valuable, and scarce. As our economy becomes more dependent on attention, the medium of exchange flows from the holders of the old to the holders of the new. However, money and attention are distinct money follows attention, whereas the reverse is not necessarily true. As babies, we cry, laugh, make noises, and want the attention on us-otherwise we are not fed, clothed, or do not survive. Similarly, attention can be translated to such tangibles necessary for survival. Money is needed for food, water, and shelter. Like money, we all crave and need attention to a certain degree. Although the “information economy” is a common name for this new state, Goldhaber rejects this information is not scarce, attention is. As fewer people are involved with manufacturing and we move away from an industrial economy, emerging careers work with information. Later, in 1997, theoretical physicist Micheal Goldhaber warned that the international economy is shifting from a material-based economy to an attention-based economy, pointing to the many services online offered for free. He also noted that “a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention,” suggesting that multitasking is a myth. Simon, who posited that attention was the “bottleneck of human thought” that limits both what we can perceive in stimulating environments and what we can do. The term “attention economy” was coined by psychologist, economist, and Nobel Laureate Herbert A. Similar to money, we exchange attention you are reading this article right now and probably ignoring the other work you have to do (sorry for bringing that up). We face attention’s scarcity every day while “paying attention” to one thing we ignore others. Although theoretically unquantifiable, many derive attention’s value from how much time we focus on a particular thing. ” Attention comes in many forms: love, recognition, obedience, and help. The American Psychological Association defines attention as “ a state in which cognitive resources are focused on certain aspects of the environment rather than on others.

However, in an era of endless amounts of information at the hands of our fingertips, what is the scarcity? Unlike the first three examples that can be empirically quantified and measured, our intangible yet extremely valuable attention is the limiting factor: we are in the age of the attention economy. Economics is the study of how scarce resources are allocated whether that is housing, food, or money.

Attention attention 2021