According to 9to5Mac, TikTok is facing growing legislative pressure across multiple US states and countries to restrict teenage access to social media apps. In response, the company has announced a series of new “wellbeing” features that it somehow claims will be more effective than actual usage limits. The app has replaced its previous screen time management page with new tools including an affirmation journal, background sound generator, and a badge system. Teenagers can now earn badges for completing “wellbeing missions” like setting screen-time limits, staying off TikTok at night, and meditating. The company will also prompt users to visit the time and wellbeing settings if they use the app during designated “sleep hours.” TikTok is currently fighting various proposed laws in courts while pushing these new features as an alternative solution.
The great badge debate
Here’s the thing about gamifying wellness: it’s basically using the same psychological tricks that make apps addictive in the first place. TikTok wants us to believe that earning a digital badge for not using TikTok is somehow more effective than, you know, actually not using TikTok. It’s like offering someone a gold star for not eating cookies while standing in a bakery. The company’s official announcement frames this as empowering users, but let’s be real – this feels more like a desperate attempt to preempt actual regulation.
Why now, and what’s at stake
This isn’t happening in a vacuum. Lawmakers are getting serious about protecting kids from social media’s worst effects, and TikTok knows it. They’re fighting these laws in court because the alternative – actual usage restrictions – would hit their engagement metrics hard. So they’re offering this softer approach instead. But does anyone actually believe that teenagers who are already hooked on endless scrolling will suddenly start meditating because there’s a badge involved? I’m skeptical. The timing is just too convenient, coming right as legislative pressure mounts.
The tech industry’s pattern
This is part of a larger pattern we’ve seen across tech. When faced with regulation, companies often propose their own “solutions” that don’t actually solve the problem but give them talking points. Remember when Facebook introduced “time well spent” features that nobody used? Same playbook. TikTok’s approach feels particularly cynical because it’s targeting the very demographic that’s most vulnerable to these design patterns. They’re essentially saying “trust us to regulate ourselves” while the experts at 9to5Mac and others are calling BS.
Where this is headed
So what happens next? Legislators aren’t likely to be impressed by digital badges when they’re concerned about real harm to developing brains. TikTok will probably continue fighting in courts while rolling out more of these half-measures. Meanwhile, parents and educators are left wondering if any of this actually helps. The fundamental conflict remains: social media companies’ business models depend on engagement, while healthy teen development often requires less screen time. No amount of well-produced explainer videos or affirmation journals can resolve that basic tension. At some point, we might need to acknowledge that self-regulation by profit-driven companies has its limits.
