Attention sanctuaries: Social practice guidelines and emergent strategies in attention activism

Abstract

While scientific consensus on the nature and extent of the harms attributable to increased use of networked screen media remains elusive, widespread expressions of acute concern among first responders to the commodified attention crisis (teachers, therapists, caregivers) should not be overlooked. This paper reviews a series of emergent strategies of collective attention activism, rooted in social practices of community action, deliberation, and consensus-building, and aimed at the creation of novel sanctuaries for the cultivation of new shared norms and habits regarding digital devices. Evidence suggests that such attention sanctuaries (and the formalization of the conventions for convening such spaces) will play an increasingly important role in addressing/mitigating the public health and welfare dimensions of societal-scale digital platforms.