Dr. Jill Walsh urges the Andover community to rethink their device usage.
Equity, Balance, and Inclusion Program (EBI) for Uppers and Seniors convened for the first time this year, featuring the talk “Social Media & Algorithmic Manipulation: How Tech Companies Use Psychology Research Against Us” by Jill Walsh, a Professor of Sociology at Boston University. Walsh offered students both information and advice regarding consumption of media.
Throughout her talk, Walsh spoke about the types of data social media companies collect, as well as how such data is sold. She then further elucidated how these companies interpret and use the data to further app interactions, which gives them more data to sell.
“If I go to TikTok and I look at it for two minutes, [companies] have a little bit of data on me, but they don’t have very much. If I go to TikTok and I’m there for 45 minutes, imagine what they have. In order to make the money they make by selling their data, they need a lot of your data. In order to keep our attention, they literally bring in cognitive neuroscientists, behavior scientists, psychiatrists, psychologists. These people help them put brain science into these platforms to make them as appealing as possible,” said Walsh.
Walsh was selected as an ASM speaker by the EBI Course Head Taylor Ware. Ware elaborated on her choice and her insights concerning Walsh’s talk, highlighting its applicability to the current technological climate on campus.
“Dr. Walsh came highly recommended to me from colleagues and a couple other schools who had seen her speak elsewhere. Given the fact that we rolled out the new cell phone policy this year, her expertise in social media, and the impact that it has on adolescent development, I thought that her specialty could be really important context for our students,” said Ware.
Ware continued, “I love her perspective that she’s not blaming anyone for their addictions to their phones or their addictions to different social media apps and gaming. Particularly, she talks a lot about our developing brains at [students’] ages and how these apps are impacting students’ abilities to focus and provide consistent attention to whatever’s in front of them.”
Beyond her explanation of how social media can manipulate its users to overuse social media, Walsh also emphasized positive and connecting aspects of the platforms. Tina Phan ’26 discussed how Walsh both gave advice on media consumption and underscored its capacity to foster community.
“I remember her saying at the beginning of the talk, about the power of social media. She said [she] believes in its ability to connect people. I believe that digital spaces can be just as empowering as face to face connection, but I also believe that if you’re going to be using these platforms, you should know how they operate and what the people behind them are thinking when they make the algorithms,” said Phan.
Towards the end of the talk, Walsh highlighted small steps students can take to moderate social media consumption while still taking advantage of social media’s benefits. Ethan Brown ’27 explained his appreciation for what he viewed as Walsh’s balanced perspective.
“I agree with when she said sometimes we need to be in silence to reflect on our thoughts. That was a very valid point and something that’s lacking in today’s generation. I also agree with how she said there can be many ways that [social media] connects us. That’s something that I think a lot of people who are trying to go against social media don’t recognize. The fact that she did recognize it is very well done by her,” said Brown.
