Research Article
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Digital Amnesia: The Memory Problem on the Natives of the Digital World

Year 2025, Volume: 18 Issue: 1, 1 - 32, 15.04.2025
https://doi.org/10.18094/josc.1573814

Abstract

This study is a research on digital amnesia, one of the rising syndromes of the age. Digital amnesia is the experience of transferring the authority to record and remember to the digital device and forgetting the information. In an effort to make sense of the syndrome through the interlocutors of digital devices, the study aims to draw attention to the growing problem, as well as to seek a way to make inferences about the new problematic and contribute to closing the knowledge gap about digital amnesia. Therefore, semi-structured interview technique was used on 25 digital natives. The study is important in terms of providing access to data from primary sources and shedding light on new phenomenon. The findings of the study, which questioned whether the symbiotic relationship with digital devices leads to digital amnesia, confirm that Google was the dominant source of information of the period and attribute the existence of this monopoly to the symbiotic experience with digital devices. It was concluded that people choose to trust internet memory instead of their own memory. Emphasizing the need for research on digital amnesia with different techniques, the study recommends taking precautions against this amnesic picture.

References

  • Alageel, A. A., Alyahya, R. A., A. Bahatheq, Y., Alzunaydi, N. A., Alghamdi, R. A., Alrahili, N. M., McIntyre, R. S., & Iacobucci, M. (2021). Smartphone addiction and associated factors among postgraduate students in an Arabic sample: A cross-sectional study. BMC Psychiatry, 21(1), 302. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-021-03285-0
  • Alhassan, A. A., Alqadhib, E. M., Taha, N. W., Alahmari, R. A., Salam, M., & Almutairi, A. F. (2018). The relationship between addiction to smartphone usage and depression among adults: A cross sectional study. BMC Psychiatry, 18(1), 148. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-018-1745-4
  • Bankov, K. (2022). Internet, the encyclopedic competence, and the google effect. (K. Bankov, Ed.), The Digital Mind (C. 22, 137-158). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-92555-0_10
  • Bergson, H. (2007). Madde ve bellek. (I. Ergüden, Çev.). Dost.
  • Brinkmann, S., & Kvale, S. (2018). Doing interviews. Sage.
  • Chung-a, P. (8 Haziran 2007). Digital dementia troubles young generation. Koreatimes. https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2023/11/113_4432.html
  • Connerton, P. (2014). Toplumlar nasıl anımsar? (A. Şenel, Çev.). Ayrıntı.
  • Doug Balby et al. (2009). Transhumanist declaration. http://humanityplus.org/ learn/transhumanist-declaration.
  • Dirin, A., Alamäki, A., & Suomala, J. (2019). Digital amnesia and personal dependency in smart devices: A challenge for AI. (H. Ketamo & P. O’Rourke, Ed.), Proceedings of Fake Intelligence Online Summit 2019 (31-36). Satakunta University of Applied Sciences. https://www.theseus.fi/handle/10024/226302
  • Elhai, J. D., Dvorak, R. D., Levine, J. C., & Hall, B. J. (2017). Problematic smartphone use: A conceptual overview and systematic review of relations with anxiety and depression psychopathology. Journal of Affective Disorders, 207, 251-259.
  • Eysenck, H. J., & Eysenck, S. B. (1968). Eysenck personality inventory. Hodder & Stoughton.
  • Gao, T., Xiang, Y.-T., Zhang, H., Zhang, Z., & Mei, S. (2017). Neuroticism and quality of life: Multiple mediating effects of smartphone addiction and depression. Psychiatry Research, 258, 457-461.
  • Greenwood, C., & Quinn, M. (2017). Digital amnesia and the future tourist. Journal of Tourism Futures, 3(1), 73-76.
  • Halbwachs, M. (1980). On collective memory. Harper & Row.
  • Harwood, J., Dooley, J. J., Scott, A. J., & Joiner, R. (2014). Constantly connected–The effects of smart-devices on mental health. Computers in Human Behavior, 34, 267-272.
  • Heffernan, T., & Ling, J. (2001). The impact of Eysenck’s extraversion introversion personality dimension on prospective memory. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 42(4), 321-325. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9450.00243
  • Huang, S., Lin, W., Xu, M., Wang, R., & Cai, Z. G. (2021). On the tip of the pen: Effects of character-level lexical variables and handwriter-level individual differences on orthographic retrieval difficulties in Chinese handwriting. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 74(9), 1497-1511. https://doi.org/10.1177/17470218211004385
  • Kaspersky Daily. (5 Temmuz 2015). ‘Dijital amnezi’ dünyasında nasıl hayatta kalınır? https://www.kaspersky.com.tr/blog/dijital-amnezi-dunyasinda-nasil-hayatta-kalinir/1687/
  • Kaspersky Labs and Opinion Matters. (2015a). From digital amnesia to the augmented mind.
  • Kaspersky Labs and Opinion Matters. (2015b). The rise and impact of digital amnesia.
  • Kaspersky Labs and Opinion Matters. (2016). Digital amnesia at work: The risks and rewards of forgetting in business.
  • Kaspersky Labs and Opinion Matters. (2019). Digital amnesia revisited: A look at how digital amnesia is affecting our minds over time.
  • Kuss, D. J., & Griffiths, M. D. (2011). Online social networking and addiction—A review of the psychological literature. International journal of environmental research and public health, 8(9), 3528-3552.
  • Langer, K. G. (2021). The history of amnesia—A review. Current Neurology and Neuroscience Reports, 21(8), 40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11910-021-01126-x
  • Lodha, P. (2019). Digital amnesia: Are we headed towards another amnesia. Indian Journal of Mental Health, 6(1), 18-23.
  • Lupinacci, L. (2021). ‘Absentmindedly scrolling through nothing’: Liveness and compulsory continuous connectedness in social media. Media, Culture & Society, 43(2), 273-290. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443720939454
  • Matar Boumosleh, J., & Jaalouk, D. (2017). Depression, anxiety, and smartphone addiction in university students-A cross sectional study. PloS one, 12(8), e0182239.
  • Musa, N., & Ishak, M. S. (2021). The phenomenon of Google effect, digital amnesia and nomophobia in academic perspective. Cyberspace: Jurnal Pendidikan Teknologi Informasi, 5(1), 1-15.
  • Neuman, W. L. (2004). Basics of social research. Pearson.
  • Nora, P. (2006). Hafıza mekânları. (M. E. Özcan, Çev.). Dost.
  • O’Gorman, M. (2015). Taking care of digital dementia. CTheory, 2-18.
  • Olick, J. K., & Robbins, J. (1998). Social memory studies: From “collective memory” to the historical sociology of mnemonic practices. Annual Review of Sociology, 24(1), 105-140. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.24.1.105
  • Özen, N. E., & Rezaki, M. (2007). Prefrontal korteks: Bellek işlevi ve bunama ile ilişkisi. Türk Psikiyatri Dergisi, 18(3), 262-269.
  • Paasonen, S. (2021). Dependent, distracted, bored: Affective formations in networked media. MIT.
  • Panova, T., & Carbonell, X. (2018). Is smartphone addiction really an addiction? Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 7(2), 252-259.
  • Parkin, A. J. (2013). Memory and amnesia: An introduction. London: Psychology.
  • Ratan, Z. A., Parrish, A.-M., Zaman, S. B., Alotaibi, M. S., & Hosseinzadeh, H. (2021). Smartphone addiction and associated health outcomes in adult populations: A systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(22), 12257.
  • Ricoeur, P. (2012). Hafıza, tarih, unutuş. (M. E. Özcan, Çev.). Metis.
  • Robert, S. J., & Kadhiravan, S. (2022). Prevalence of digital amnesia, somatic symptoms and sleep disorders among youth during COVID-19 pandemic. Heliyon, 8(8), 1-6.
  • Robert, S. J., Kadhiravan, S., & McKay, D. (2024). The development and validation of digital amnesia scale. Current Psychology, 19594-19603.
  • Rock, I. (1975). An introduction to perception. Mcmillan.
  • Salman Yıkmış, M. (2020). Nitel araştırmalarda e-görüşme tekniği. Trakya University Journal of Social Science, 22(1), 183-197. https://doi.org/10.26468/trakyasobed.556296
  • Seifi, A., Rodriguez, M., & Jafari, S. (2021). Physicians-in-training: From digital devices to digital amnesia. Southern Medical Journal, 114(9), 577-578.
  • Sparrow, B., Liu, J., & Wegner, D. M. (2011). Google effects on memory: Cognitive consequences of having information at our fingertips. Science, 333(6043), 776-778. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1207745
  • Swaminathan, S. (2020). Digital amnesia: The smart phone and the modern Indian student. Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Studies, 2(3), 23-31.
  • Tutar, H. (2022). Nitel araştırmalarda geçerlilik ve güvenilirlik: Bir model önerisi. Anadolu Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 22(Özel Sayı 2), 117-140.
  • Vasquez, B. P., Cretu, A., Max, A., & Moscovitch, M. (2023). Early mobile app training proficiency predicts how well memory-impaired individuals learn to use digital memory aids in the real world. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 33(8), 1411-1429. https://doi.org/10.1080/09602011.2022.2107020
  • Wilmer, H. H., Sherman, L. E., & Chein, J. M. (2017). Smartphones and cognition: A review of research exploring the links between mobile technology habits and cognitive functioning. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1-16.
  • Wimber, M., Alink, A., Charest, I., Kriegeskorte, N., & Anderson, M. C. (2015). Retrieval induces adaptive forgetting of competing memories via cortical pattern suppression. Nature Neuroscience, 18(4), 582-589.
  • Yadav, A. (2019). ‘Digital amnesia’ on the rise as we outsource our memory to the Web. Journal of Critical Reviews, 6(3), 234-241.
  • Zelizer, B. (1995). Reading the past against the grain: The shape of memory studies. Critical Studies in Mass Communication, 12, 214-214.

Dijital Amnezi: Dijital Dünyanın Yerlilerinde Bellek Sorunu

Year 2025, Volume: 18 Issue: 1, 1 - 32, 15.04.2025
https://doi.org/10.18094/josc.1573814

Abstract

Bu çalışma çağın yükselen sendromlarından dijital amnezi hakkında bir araştırmadır. Dijital amnezi, kişinin kaydetme ve hatırlama yetkisini dijital cihaza devredip doğru adreste olduğundan emin olduğu bilgileri unutma deneyimidir. Bahse konu sendromu dijital cihazların muhatapları üzerinden anlamlandırma çabasındaki çalışma, giderek artan soruna dikkat çekmenin yanı sıra yeni sorunsal hakkında çıkarımda bulunmanın yolunu arama ve dijital amnezi hakkındaki bilgi gediğini kapamaya katkıda bulunmayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu doğrultuda 25 kişiden oluşan dijital yerli örneklemine yarı yapılandırılmış görüşme tekniği uygulanmıştır. Deneyimlediğimiz çağa ilişkin durum tespitinde bulunmayı sağlayan verilere birincil kaynaklardan ulaşan çalışma, hakkında yeterince araştırma bulunmayan bu yeni fenomeni tanımaya yöneldiği için önemlidir. Dijital cihazlarla simbiyotik ilişkinin dijital amneziye yol açıp açmadığını sorgulayan araştırmada ulaşılan bulgular, dönemin dominant bilgi kaynağının Google olduğunu onaylarken bu tekelin varlığını dijital cihazlarla simbiyotik yaşantıya bağlamaktadır. İnsanın kendi belleği yerine internet hafızasına güvenmeyi seçtiği, hatırlama edimini dijital aygıtlara devretmenin yeni davranış biçimi olduğu, bir tuşa tıklandığında verilerin kullanılabilirliği ile bunların belleğe kaydedilmemesi arasında doğru orantı bulunduğu sonucuna ulaşan çalışma; dijital amnezi hakkında farklı tekniklerle yürütülecek araştırmalara duyulan ihtiyacı hatırlatarak söz konusu amnezik tabloya yönelik tedbirlerin aciliyetini dikkate alma önerisinde bulunmaktadır.

References

  • Alageel, A. A., Alyahya, R. A., A. Bahatheq, Y., Alzunaydi, N. A., Alghamdi, R. A., Alrahili, N. M., McIntyre, R. S., & Iacobucci, M. (2021). Smartphone addiction and associated factors among postgraduate students in an Arabic sample: A cross-sectional study. BMC Psychiatry, 21(1), 302. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-021-03285-0
  • Alhassan, A. A., Alqadhib, E. M., Taha, N. W., Alahmari, R. A., Salam, M., & Almutairi, A. F. (2018). The relationship between addiction to smartphone usage and depression among adults: A cross sectional study. BMC Psychiatry, 18(1), 148. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-018-1745-4
  • Bankov, K. (2022). Internet, the encyclopedic competence, and the google effect. (K. Bankov, Ed.), The Digital Mind (C. 22, 137-158). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-92555-0_10
  • Bergson, H. (2007). Madde ve bellek. (I. Ergüden, Çev.). Dost.
  • Brinkmann, S., & Kvale, S. (2018). Doing interviews. Sage.
  • Chung-a, P. (8 Haziran 2007). Digital dementia troubles young generation. Koreatimes. https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2023/11/113_4432.html
  • Connerton, P. (2014). Toplumlar nasıl anımsar? (A. Şenel, Çev.). Ayrıntı.
  • Doug Balby et al. (2009). Transhumanist declaration. http://humanityplus.org/ learn/transhumanist-declaration.
  • Dirin, A., Alamäki, A., & Suomala, J. (2019). Digital amnesia and personal dependency in smart devices: A challenge for AI. (H. Ketamo & P. O’Rourke, Ed.), Proceedings of Fake Intelligence Online Summit 2019 (31-36). Satakunta University of Applied Sciences. https://www.theseus.fi/handle/10024/226302
  • Elhai, J. D., Dvorak, R. D., Levine, J. C., & Hall, B. J. (2017). Problematic smartphone use: A conceptual overview and systematic review of relations with anxiety and depression psychopathology. Journal of Affective Disorders, 207, 251-259.
  • Eysenck, H. J., & Eysenck, S. B. (1968). Eysenck personality inventory. Hodder & Stoughton.
  • Gao, T., Xiang, Y.-T., Zhang, H., Zhang, Z., & Mei, S. (2017). Neuroticism and quality of life: Multiple mediating effects of smartphone addiction and depression. Psychiatry Research, 258, 457-461.
  • Greenwood, C., & Quinn, M. (2017). Digital amnesia and the future tourist. Journal of Tourism Futures, 3(1), 73-76.
  • Halbwachs, M. (1980). On collective memory. Harper & Row.
  • Harwood, J., Dooley, J. J., Scott, A. J., & Joiner, R. (2014). Constantly connected–The effects of smart-devices on mental health. Computers in Human Behavior, 34, 267-272.
  • Heffernan, T., & Ling, J. (2001). The impact of Eysenck’s extraversion introversion personality dimension on prospective memory. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 42(4), 321-325. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9450.00243
  • Huang, S., Lin, W., Xu, M., Wang, R., & Cai, Z. G. (2021). On the tip of the pen: Effects of character-level lexical variables and handwriter-level individual differences on orthographic retrieval difficulties in Chinese handwriting. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 74(9), 1497-1511. https://doi.org/10.1177/17470218211004385
  • Kaspersky Daily. (5 Temmuz 2015). ‘Dijital amnezi’ dünyasında nasıl hayatta kalınır? https://www.kaspersky.com.tr/blog/dijital-amnezi-dunyasinda-nasil-hayatta-kalinir/1687/
  • Kaspersky Labs and Opinion Matters. (2015a). From digital amnesia to the augmented mind.
  • Kaspersky Labs and Opinion Matters. (2015b). The rise and impact of digital amnesia.
  • Kaspersky Labs and Opinion Matters. (2016). Digital amnesia at work: The risks and rewards of forgetting in business.
  • Kaspersky Labs and Opinion Matters. (2019). Digital amnesia revisited: A look at how digital amnesia is affecting our minds over time.
  • Kuss, D. J., & Griffiths, M. D. (2011). Online social networking and addiction—A review of the psychological literature. International journal of environmental research and public health, 8(9), 3528-3552.
  • Langer, K. G. (2021). The history of amnesia—A review. Current Neurology and Neuroscience Reports, 21(8), 40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11910-021-01126-x
  • Lodha, P. (2019). Digital amnesia: Are we headed towards another amnesia. Indian Journal of Mental Health, 6(1), 18-23.
  • Lupinacci, L. (2021). ‘Absentmindedly scrolling through nothing’: Liveness and compulsory continuous connectedness in social media. Media, Culture & Society, 43(2), 273-290. https://doi.org/10.1177/0163443720939454
  • Matar Boumosleh, J., & Jaalouk, D. (2017). Depression, anxiety, and smartphone addiction in university students-A cross sectional study. PloS one, 12(8), e0182239.
  • Musa, N., & Ishak, M. S. (2021). The phenomenon of Google effect, digital amnesia and nomophobia in academic perspective. Cyberspace: Jurnal Pendidikan Teknologi Informasi, 5(1), 1-15.
  • Neuman, W. L. (2004). Basics of social research. Pearson.
  • Nora, P. (2006). Hafıza mekânları. (M. E. Özcan, Çev.). Dost.
  • O’Gorman, M. (2015). Taking care of digital dementia. CTheory, 2-18.
  • Olick, J. K., & Robbins, J. (1998). Social memory studies: From “collective memory” to the historical sociology of mnemonic practices. Annual Review of Sociology, 24(1), 105-140. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.soc.24.1.105
  • Özen, N. E., & Rezaki, M. (2007). Prefrontal korteks: Bellek işlevi ve bunama ile ilişkisi. Türk Psikiyatri Dergisi, 18(3), 262-269.
  • Paasonen, S. (2021). Dependent, distracted, bored: Affective formations in networked media. MIT.
  • Panova, T., & Carbonell, X. (2018). Is smartphone addiction really an addiction? Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 7(2), 252-259.
  • Parkin, A. J. (2013). Memory and amnesia: An introduction. London: Psychology.
  • Ratan, Z. A., Parrish, A.-M., Zaman, S. B., Alotaibi, M. S., & Hosseinzadeh, H. (2021). Smartphone addiction and associated health outcomes in adult populations: A systematic review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(22), 12257.
  • Ricoeur, P. (2012). Hafıza, tarih, unutuş. (M. E. Özcan, Çev.). Metis.
  • Robert, S. J., & Kadhiravan, S. (2022). Prevalence of digital amnesia, somatic symptoms and sleep disorders among youth during COVID-19 pandemic. Heliyon, 8(8), 1-6.
  • Robert, S. J., Kadhiravan, S., & McKay, D. (2024). The development and validation of digital amnesia scale. Current Psychology, 19594-19603.
  • Rock, I. (1975). An introduction to perception. Mcmillan.
  • Salman Yıkmış, M. (2020). Nitel araştırmalarda e-görüşme tekniği. Trakya University Journal of Social Science, 22(1), 183-197. https://doi.org/10.26468/trakyasobed.556296
  • Seifi, A., Rodriguez, M., & Jafari, S. (2021). Physicians-in-training: From digital devices to digital amnesia. Southern Medical Journal, 114(9), 577-578.
  • Sparrow, B., Liu, J., & Wegner, D. M. (2011). Google effects on memory: Cognitive consequences of having information at our fingertips. Science, 333(6043), 776-778. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1207745
  • Swaminathan, S. (2020). Digital amnesia: The smart phone and the modern Indian student. Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Studies, 2(3), 23-31.
  • Tutar, H. (2022). Nitel araştırmalarda geçerlilik ve güvenilirlik: Bir model önerisi. Anadolu Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi, 22(Özel Sayı 2), 117-140.
  • Vasquez, B. P., Cretu, A., Max, A., & Moscovitch, M. (2023). Early mobile app training proficiency predicts how well memory-impaired individuals learn to use digital memory aids in the real world. Neuropsychological Rehabilitation, 33(8), 1411-1429. https://doi.org/10.1080/09602011.2022.2107020
  • Wilmer, H. H., Sherman, L. E., & Chein, J. M. (2017). Smartphones and cognition: A review of research exploring the links between mobile technology habits and cognitive functioning. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, 1-16.
  • Wimber, M., Alink, A., Charest, I., Kriegeskorte, N., & Anderson, M. C. (2015). Retrieval induces adaptive forgetting of competing memories via cortical pattern suppression. Nature Neuroscience, 18(4), 582-589.
  • Yadav, A. (2019). ‘Digital amnesia’ on the rise as we outsource our memory to the Web. Journal of Critical Reviews, 6(3), 234-241.
  • Zelizer, B. (1995). Reading the past against the grain: The shape of memory studies. Critical Studies in Mass Communication, 12, 214-214.
There are 51 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language Turkish
Subjects Communication and Media Studies (Other)
Journal Section Research Articles
Authors

Fikriye Çelik 0000-0003-1633-0357

Publication Date April 15, 2025
Submission Date October 25, 2024
Acceptance Date February 20, 2025
Published in Issue Year 2025 Volume: 18 Issue: 1

Cite

APA Çelik, F. (2025). Dijital Amnezi: Dijital Dünyanın Yerlilerinde Bellek Sorunu. Selçuk İletişim, 18(1), 1-32. https://doi.org/10.18094/josc.1573814