Nagging
1
Purpose
Nagging aims to wear down users to incentivize actions like downloading or signing up for a product.
2
Psychological principles
This strategy uses the psychological principles of interruption and mere exposure.
3
Prevention
To prevent nagging, use ad blockers, VPNs, and customized notification settings.
Example
Accessing Reddit on a browser, rather than the Reddit App, activates this pop-up. Each fresh page load (or even a scroll far enough down a thread) triggers the same modal. Declining once does nothing to stop the next appearance.
An obvious pattern, with obvious results
Nagging is one of the more obvious deceptive patterns. We typically cannot be frustrated or nagged by something we only address subconsciously.
Because frustration is almost a guarantee, nagging can only be effective if the benefit the user gains outweighs the frustration they experience. While some large companies acknowledge the negative effects of nagging, many still employ this strategy, believing the benefits outweigh their concern over the user's frustration.
Behind the pattern
Interruption. Interruption typically fuels anger and frustration. UC Berkeley found that frequent interruptions can lead to “higher rates of exhaustion, stress-induced ailments, and a doubling of errors.” Knowing this, companies use nagging to persuade users to go against their desires to avoid the frustration inflicted by a nagging pattern.
The mere exposure effect. This is combined with the mere exposure effect, which suggests that the more exposure we have to something, the more likely we are to like it or prefer it. This is also why many ads online track users across sites and platforms.
This effect is strongest when people have no previous negative connotations and are frequently exposed. In some cases, people’s preferences for a product can increase exponentially with each additional exposure.
How to protect yourself
Use an ad blocker or VPN. These can prevent many of the ads that cling to your searches.
Reduce notifications. Most apps and products that include notifications allow you to customize when and how you receive them. Although it may take some time upfront, eliminating unnecessary notifications is worthwhile to prevent notification nagging.