Viewing personalized video clips recommended by TikTok activates default mode network and ventral tegmental area
Conghui Su, Hui Zhou, Liang Gong, Binyu Teng, F. Geng, Yuzheng Hu
Neuroimage May 2, 2021 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118136 (opens in new tab) via Semantic Scholar
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractPersonalized video recommendations on platforms like TikTok can trigger addiction-like behaviors in some users. A survey and fMRI study of young adults found that more undesired symptoms—such as difficulty controlling use—correlated with lower self-control, and about 5.9% of users showed significant problematic use. Brain scans revealed that viewing personalized (vs. non-personalized) videos increased activity in the default mode network, ventral tegmental area, and regions involved in attention and sensory processing. Stronger connections between these brain areas and visual/auditory pathways suggest how recommendation algorithms may keep users engaged by tapping into neural systems for self-relevance and reward.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Cross-sectional survey and fMRI experiment Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Young adult TikTok users |
| Keywords | Medicine Computer science Psychology |
| Key finding | Personalized video recommendations activate brain regions linked to self-relevance and reward, and problematic use is associated with lower self-control. |
Abstract
Cutting-edge recommendation algorithms have been widely used by media platforms to suggest users with personalized content. While such user-specific recommendations may satisfy users' needs to obtain intended information, some users may develop a problematic use pattern manifested by addiction-like undesired behaviors. Using a popular video sharing and recommending platform (TikTok) as an example, the present study first characterized use-related undesired behaviors with a questionnaire, then investigated how personally recommended videos modulated brain activity with an fMRI experiment. We found more undesired symptoms were related to lower self-control ability among young adults, and about 5.9% of TikTok users may have significant problematic use. The fMRI results showed higher brain activations in sub-components of the default mode network (DMN), ventral tegmental area, and discrete regions including lateral prefrontal, anterior thalamus, and cerebellum when viewing personalized videos in contrast to non-personalized ones. Psychophysiological interaction analyses revealed stronger coupling between activated DMN subregions and neural pathways underlying auditory and visual processing, as well as the frontoparietal network. This study highlights the functional heterogeneity of DMN in viewing personalized videos and may shed light on the neural underpinnings of how recommendation algorithms are able to keep the user's attention to suggested contents.