[2025 Good Brain] Professor Jae Seung Jeong: "To Find Fulfillment and Everyday Joy, We Must Break Free from Dopamine Addiction"

"Dopamine Society and Brain Fatigue": Keynote Speech Highlights

"'Dopamine addiction' destroys the small joys of everyday life and diminishes the sense of fulfillment that comes from achievement and human relationships. We must approach this as a social issue."

Professor Jae Seung Jeong of the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at KAIST is delivering a keynote speech on the topic "The Birth of the Dopamine Society and Brain Fatigue" at the "2025 Good Brain Conference" hosted by Asia Economy, held at the Westin Chosun Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 3rd. 2025.9.3 Photo by Kang Jinhyung

Professor Jae Seung Jeong of the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at KAIST made this statement at the "2025 Good Brain Conference" held at the Westin Chosun Hotel in Sogong-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul on the 3rd. During the conference, Professor Jeong delivered a keynote speech titled "The Birth of the Dopamine Society and Brain Fatigue," diagnosing the neuroscientific challenges of the digital age and proposing social alternatives. Hosted by Asia Economy, this year's Good Brain Conference was held under the theme "Healing the Dopamine Society: Designing Recovery in an Age of Addiction."

Professor Jeong stated, "Those of us living in modern times exist within a reward circuit created by dopamine," adding, "Continuous stimulation is accelerating brain fatigue." He first outlined the role of dopamine as revealed by neuroscience. Dopamine is originally a "neurotransmitter of desire" that aids survival and achievement. It induces pleasure when rewards exceed expectations and motivates individuals through this process. However, Professor Jeong pointed out that algorithms now design this circuit as an "infinite loop of craving," leading to human exhaustion. He referred to this as a "dopamine high," explaining that as addiction intensifies, the joy of daily life fades and feelings of lethargy deepen. "Recovery from addiction takes a long time. It is not simply a matter of individual willpower, but requires a response at the societal level," he said.

Professor Jeong highlighted the reality that, on average, people now spend more than six hours a day looking at screens across smartphones, PCs, and tablets. "Staring at a luminous device just 10 centimeters from your face for hours is extremely harmful to the human brain and eyes," he pointed out, adding, "We are repeating these unreasonable behaviors every day." He particularly noted that algorithms on short-form platforms such as TikTok and YouTube Shorts stimulate users' dopamine circuits, encouraging addictive usage.

Professor Jae Seung Jung of KAIST's Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences attended the "2025 Good Brain Conference" hosted by Asia Economy at the Westin Chosun Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 3rd, delivering a keynote speech on the topic "The Birth of the Dopamine Society and Brain Fatigue." 2025.9.3 Photo by Kang Jinhyung

Another key point of the lecture was the "comparison society." In the past, adolescents formed their sense of self by comparing themselves to their peers, but now they compare themselves to the most outstanding people around the world on Instagram. This sense of relative deprivation, such as "Why wasn't I born into a family like that?" increases depression and anxiety.

In fact, in the United States, since the introduction of the iPhone in 2007, there has been a sharp increase in cases of adolescent depression, suicide attempts, and self-harm. Similar trends have been observed in South Korea. Professor Jeong emphasized, "Female students, in particular, are more vulnerable to social media," and added, "The decline in self-esteem and deterioration of mental health are serious problems that fundamentally undermine the motivation of future generations."

As solutions, digital detox and analog experiences were proposed. Professor Jeong shared his recent experience at the KAIST research lab, where he conducted an experiment of giving up smartphones for three days: "I felt anxious on the first day, but by the third day, a sense of peace came. Afterward, my actual smartphone usage time decreased." He also suggested restoring physical experiences such as playgrounds during adolescence, and if a mobile phone is necessary, starting with a feature phone with limited functions instead of a smartphone. Professor Jeong emphasized, "The minimum age for creating social media accounts should be raised from the current 13 to 16," explaining that "this is a measure to protect adolescents whose self-control and prefrontal cortex functions are still immature."