Charting Habits: Aristotle, AI, and Attention Spans

About this episode

The episode discusses how digital habits shape our character through the lens of philosophy and ethics.

Are your daily digital habits shaping you into the person you actually want to be? In this special solo episode, I am turning my seminary paper into a practical conversation about how social media actively forms our character. We explore the philosophy of Aristotle and René Girard to understand how the algorithms underlying our favorite apps are designed to make us highly predictable and emotionally attached to our screens. From diminishing attention spans to the temptation of political rage bait, we take an honest inventory of the gritty realities of our daily digital rituals. But should we just delete our apps and walk away? We explore the tension between Immanuel Kant's ethics and the reality that social media is the primary place where people actually gather. We discuss the Holy Spirit's role in sanctification, the importance of intentionally cultivating virtue over vice, and practical ways to curate a digital life that actually encourages human flourishing.

People in this episode

Host: Matt

Topics covered

• digital habits
• social media
• character formation
• philosophy
• ethics
• virtue
• human flourishing

Keywords

• digital habits
• social media
• Aristotle
• Immanuel Kant
• character formation
• attention spans
• virtue
• ethics

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