The Influence of Superficial Cues on Behavior and Decision-Making

Ever found yourself scrolling through social media late at night and accidentally buying something you regretted? In this episode of The Conversation Weekly podcast, we talk to an advertising expert about research into how social media can overload ours brains and make us buy products we don’t need or want.

Featuring Matthew Pittman, a professor of advertising at the University of Tennessee in the US, and Kate Kilpatrick from The Conversation in the US.

This episode was written and produced by Mend Mariwany with production assistance from Katie Flood and our intern Jusneel Mahal. Eloise Stevens does our sound design, and our theme music is by Neeta Sarl. The executive producer is Gemma Ware.Full credits available here. A transcript is now available.

Further reading and listening:

• Too many digital distractions are eroding our ability to read deeply, and here’s how we can become aware of what’s happening — podcast
• How social media can distort and misinform when communicating science
• Mounting research documents the harmful effects of social media use on mental health, including body image and development of eating disorders