Instagram will start begging users to take a break
Just a month ago, gg editorial staff told about Instagram's plans to implement an insistent reminder feature to take a break from browsing the feed. And now, it seems, the time has come. Instagram has started testing the "Take a break" feature.
"Take a break" is exactly what it sounds like to encourage Instagram users to pause now and then. This, of course, applies to those who are heavily addicted to continuously using the social networking app for more than a few minutes. Despite the usefulness of the idea, there are some drawbacks that could make it less effective. Theoretically, these flaws should be addressed before the feature is rolled out to all users.
Testing "Take a Break"
- Adam Mosseri (@mosseri) November 10, 2021
We started testing a new feature called "Take a Break" this week. This opt-in control enables you to receive break reminders in-app after a duration of your choosing.
I'm excited to dig into the results & hopefully launch this sometime in December. pic.twitter.com/WdSTjL6ZdH
First, this feature is still optional, and users need to activate it manually. The feature is disabled by default, but that's understandable since it's still a voluntary experiment. For this feature to actually be useful, Instagram will probably need to activate it by default when it is rolled out. In addition, it would be desirable to offer users the option to choose the time limit on their own and in a more flexible way. At the moment there are only three preset durations - 10, 20 and 30 minutes - as well as a complete shutdown.
Instagram will probably also have to develop a way to actually force the user to take a break. In this test mode, the reminder can simply be brushed aside and continue scrolling endlessly. Given human nature, this pretty much negates the whole purpose of reminding users to take a break.
Illustrations: Anastasia Gepp
