PAP: Are you on Twitter?

Dr. Paweł Fortuna: No. I have accounts on Facebook, LinkedIn and Researchgate, and I check in as often as necessary. I deleted Instagram, TikTok and Twitter. Why? I noticed that my life was beginning to be subordinated to certain habits that were formed automatically: one gets up in the morning and looks through what is said, by who, on what topic, and falls into the trap of feeling not up to date and missing something. This is very intriguing because we humans like stimulation and we like to feel in control.

However, my work mainly involves thinking, which is facilitated by silence, which I value more and more, and good contact with myself. Maybe it is also a matter of age. At a certain point, one begins to value mental intimacy, and at the same time selectively chooses the people to whom one wants to reveal one's deepest interior and discuss conclusions.

I also gave up on creating my own channels. I tried it all, but I came to the conclusion that I did not want to subordinate my life to it. I admire people who devote themselves to this. I prefer to write books that are often long-travelling letters, but to the right recipient. This is my conscious choice, which does not mean that I rule out social media. I simply try to use it in a way that guarantees optimal functioning.

PAP: It has long been known that excessive involvement in social media is addictive - that dopamine that we want more and more of. But maybe it also has a positive impact on our lives?

P.F.: First of all, we should have a positive impact on our lives. And we, not social media, are responsible for this. It is important not to lose subjectivity in the relationship between humans and technology, not to hand over the reins of life to someone else. Because what are these social media, really? They are business organizations. Sometimes people think that they enter a platform and are on the 'common pasture'. Not really. This is a space constructed as a business project by people who are not involved in charity work. They want to make money, so the entire structure of these spaces is subordinated to profit - this must be accepted with understanding.

And if the customer is satisfied, neuromediators are released, thanks to which the customer's attachment to the platform increases. As a result, we have loyal, satisfied customers who not only consume the product themselves, but also recommend the product to others. And they do this despite being aware of the restrictions and censorship they is subject to, adapting to the imposed conditions.

PAP: People know about it, but they keep using it.

P.F.: Force of habit. The second thing is that each of us, while on social media, provides data about ourselves. The reaction to any stimulus, or even the lack thereof, creates a stream of data, and with it a mathematical and statistical representation of ourselves. From the point of view of human knowledge, these are the best data that a researcher, including a marketing specialist, can dream of: not declarations, but 'raw' facts.

Gilles Deleuze, a philosopher, called this mathematical and statistical cloud a dividual, distinguishing it from an individual, i.e. the user sitting in front of the computer.

But it turns out that this dividual has a mind of its own. These are algorithms that we users do not have access to. We do not know how they are managed, but we see the effects of their activity. I mean page personalization and countless suggestions. Our sensitivity and preferences are tested, individual 'action-reaction' patterns are becoming more and more clear.

The constant feedback loop between the individual and the dividual shapes an entity that can be called the 'hybrid self'. This is the seed of a new type of identity, which is the subject of planned research. We don't know yet to what extent the intertwining of selves from this and that side of the interface affects identity, but we already have the results of pilot studies that concerned gamers. It turns out that about 30 percent of them admitted that the characters they play actually function in their minds as providers of points of view, and sometimes hints recorded as an internal monologue.

The way technology is used means that the analysis of this process should be performed differently than in the past, when it was examined how the recipient, e.g. a television viewer, understood what the sender conveyed. Today, the recipient is also the sender and vice versa.

PAP: People were already sensitive to virtual entities. They identified with characters from popular TV shows, for example.

P.F.: And today everyone can also be whoever they want, only... more. Social media provides the opportunity to create various types of images, and in fact, in the virtual world, it is not people who contact each other, but their images. We live in times of multiple identities, taking advantage of the opportunity to beautify, mask, deceive and provoke. As a result, social media becomes a dynamic polyphony, a masquerade ball, a huge cyber version of Hyde Park.

PAP: You seem to be demonising social networking sites a bit.

P.F.: Not at all. I represent a group of researchers who are interested in recognizing and explaining the beneficial use of technology in the realities in which we live. In 2021, I defined the area of research on this type of interaction as positive cyberpsychology. I appreciate that, for example, during the pandemic, social media was a space that enabled a huge number of people to survive, both on a business and social level.

Various support groups, even those that bring together people with similar interests, should not be underrated. There are also portals that group together scientists, where you can get fresh, hot rolls from a scientific bakery... Good relationships, along with experienced support, are among the most important pillars of well-being. Social media gives you a chance to experience that in a community everyone can be strengthened by the strength of other members.

PAP: Is this virtual world not the same as the real one: there are plenty of offers, but everyone chooses what they like?

P.F.: That is correct. The problem is not in the media, but in us, people who have to come to terms with the fact that providing data about ourselves is simply forced labour of the 21st century. The difficulty of accepting this state of affairs only reveals that, as always, also when we come into contact with modern technologies, our need for subjectivity, the values that guide us, what we want in life, what our concept of the best self is, become paramount.

I meet people who say outright, often with some kind of satisfaction, that they are Internet trolls, that they love to create storms on the Internet, put matters on a knife's edge. They use their intellect and knowledge to crush others. So if you have a problem with social media, it is because you have a problem with community, mutual respect and self-control.

Social media reveals our condition in the interpersonal dimension. It saddens me that many people with beautiful sensitivity and mentality, as well as great knowledge, are silent on social media, but I understand them. They do not want to waste energy on contact with haters who confuse the word assertiveness with rudeness.

PAP: I am not surprised, if a sensible person does not want to get punched in the face, they do not go into a pub where bandits party at night. Unfortunately, politicians often set the tone for brutal online fights.

P.F.: A rose is a rose is a rose is a rose.. Big quantifiers - someone roasted, massacred someone else - daily gladiator fights, games. Respect for another person, truth and logic in homeopathic values recede into the background. For someone brought up with classic language, discussion and behaviour standards, this clamour is difficult to accept.

PAP: So how do we live in a world where social media will probably never disappear?

P.F.: Technology is just like any other tool, e.g. a hammer. We should use it wisely. 'Smart' technology should meet the 'smart' user. Fortunately, thanks to social media, we also have access to valuable content and great personalities.

Let us turn our eyes towards a high-quality life, a life worth living. Let us set the quality bar high when it comes to our interactions and being among people. Let us fall in love with our best Self, with our powers related to self-control, moderation, gratitude and admiration for beauty. Of course, all this can also be found in these media, because there is space for 'humane treatment'. And one more thing - maybe it is worth taking care of moving from the position of a consumer to a connoisseur.

The social media business, in accordance with the rules of marketing, strengthens our status as consumers who often swallow what is given to them and are happy when they can also formulate assessments, comment and promote, becoming a link in the marketing machine. A connoisseur does not buy just anything, a connoisseur has taste, which Ludwig Wittgenstein wrote so beautifully about, and trusts this internal suggestion when making everyday choices.

Interview by Mira Suchodolska (PAP)

mir/ par/ kap/

tr. RL