In all honesty, some basic human responsibilities are dull. No one looks forward to recycling bottles, watering their plants, picking up their dog's poop, etc. This mixed with laziness is why our oceans are now poisoned by plastic, why house plants die of thirst, and why nice shoes are ruined by stepping in doggy poop.
But what if these tasks were fun to do?
The Fun Theory is an idea, created by Volkswagon, and it basically states that through fun, you can improve people's behavior for the better. Volkswagon not only applies this theory while designing new cars, but they also set up an international competition based on this theory. The winner was selected by a panel of Swedish experts in environmental issues and behavioral science. His name is Kevin Richardson and for his idea, he won 2,500 euros. A video of his idea and its application to real life can be seen here:
After spending about an hour on the website for The Fun Theory (thefuntheory.com), looking at all the cool ideas, I have concluded that it is INGENIUS. And many of these ideas could legitimately benefit society. My favorite theory being that you can get more people to use the stairs instead of the escalator by making it fun to walk up the stairs. People in Stockholm did this by transforming a staircase, next to an escalator, into a giant piano. 66% more people chose the stairs instead of the escalator that day. The video of this theory can be seen HERE.
I just have one problem with The Fun Theory though; When did it start having to be fun for people to do the right thing? In many of videos I have watched on the website they provide you with statistics about how the particular theory of the video actually changed human behavior. The difference between the numbers before The Fun Theory was applied, and after The Fun Theory was applied are astonishing.
Nowadays, we live in a world where we constantly are entertained from our phones, our tvs, and our computers. Especially in America where in 2009, the percent of people who didn't use internet at their homes was at a low 31.3% (US Census Bureau). And since 2009 it seems logical that, that percentage has only decreased.
These forms of constant entertainment make our duties to be a responsible human being seem boring and unappealing, which is why they're not getting done. I wish we lived in a world where most people didn't have to be amused to throw out their trash into a garbage bin instead of on the ground. But, until then, The Fun Theory is a nice solution.
Your thoughts?
-Chrisanthy S
I loved looking at everything on this website! It is so true that if something is more fun than the conventional way, people are more likely to do it. It's a little sad, but why would I want to throw my garbage away, unless it was a game or had good sound effects? Even though people should just want to do it for hemselves and the planet, but as long as it gets done, I think this is a great way to influence people!
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that while this is a great idea, it kind of reflects poorly on what humans in first-world countries have become. We don't need to worry about surviving - hunting for food, farming, dealing with illness - because we have others to do that for us. Because of this, we've become a very coddled species, one that's given everything it needs and takes most of these things for granted. Like first-grade students, we need some sort of instant gratification to motivate us to actually do things that will benefit others or ourselves in the long-run. These ideas are sort of like the gold stars elementary school teachers give to kids when they do something good; it's mindless positive reinforcement for something we need to do, because we probably wouldn't have the foresight to do it otherwise. It's also a little bit discomforting to see, in the "piano-stairs" video, a slew of adults jumping all over the stairs to hear the noises it makes, because this is the exact kind of behavior I'd expect to see from a young child. I'm not saying it's bad to have a sense of childlike-wonder as an adult, it just seems to me that we're all becoming a little bit less mature as a species, in all sorts of ways. Good post though Chrisanthy, that website is really cool.
ReplyDeleteI agree with both the posts above. However, I would like to point out another interesting thing about the Fun Theory. Think of what it will do for Volkswagon. This theory is a huge promotor of Volkswagon! In some ways it seems that the Fun Theory, to the Volkswagon company, really isn't about making the world a better place for future generations, but much more about selling cars by creating a friendly image for themselves. What does this say about us? it's much like the Pepsi refresh Project. It was as much, if not more, about creating a good name for Pepsi as it was giving back to the community.
ReplyDeleteI find myself partially agreeing to all three of your comments with the idea that we as humans have become dangerously lazy. Though to Natalie's comment- I understand where you are coming from and I agree this is amazing PR for volkswagon. Although, companies are going to do PR anyways, so if their PR doubles as a way to benefit the community then all the better!
ReplyDeleteLudacris,
ReplyDeleteNice job blogging this quarter. This post nicely embeds a video source and also engage with the text. I also really like how you step back and take a critical look at Fun Theory by relating it to the entertainment industry. (You internet stat can be stated MUCH more clearly, but...) Overall this is very good.