Tarhan: “Capitalism sells optimism to hide its own desperation”

President of Üsküdar University and Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan participated in the BTU Talks organized by Bursa Technical University. Speaking to the audience in Bursa under the title Artificial Intelligence, Social Media and the Cycle of Addiction, Tarhan highlighted both the opportunities and threats posed by artificial intelligence and emphasized the importance of using it correctly and consciously. He touched on the need for parental supervision in young people’s interactions with the digital world and underlined the importance of developing algorithms suitable for children and practicing digital detox. Tarhan added that capitalism sells optimism to conceal its own sense of helplessness.

The event held in the BTU Turquoise Hall was attended by Bursa Technical University Rector Prof. Naci Çağlar, along with the university’s academic and administrative staff and students.

“We banned banning artificial intelligence”

Psychiatrist Prof. Nevzat Tarhan stated that artificial intelligence is not a conscious entity and said: “Just as the invention of the printing press had a profound impact on human history, artificial intelligence is creating a similar transformation. We can even consider it the beginning of Industry 4.0. We discussed this extensively at the university and decided to ban banning artificial intelligence. Some people worry that students will let artificial intelligence do everything for them and feel uncomfortable about it. However, artificial intelligence is not a conscious being. It does not have to be intelligent. What matters is that it lacks consciousness. A human being knows more and can make decisions faster. Artificial intelligence does not look at a situation like a human or generate questions like a human. It is not a conscious entity capable of producing new knowledge. It cannot predict what the person in front of it will think or do. If you place artificial intelligence in the position of a leader, it will begin to direct you. However, if you set your own goal and use artificial intelligence toward that goal, then it serves you. This is why the purpose in the relationship with artificial intelligence must come from us. If we determine the correct area of use, artificial intelligence makes our work incredibly easier.”

“Both a threat and an opportunity”

Tarhan noted that artificial intelligence will serve whichever purpose it is used for and continued: “Artificial intelligence is currently a digital platform that contains both threats and opportunities. Depending on how we use it, there are great possibilities that can turn into advantages. However, it is essential to distinguish between those who are conscious and those who are not. For young people who have not yet developed self-awareness and are still in their formative period, artificial intelligence can pose a significant danger. The risk increases especially during adolescence. For this reason, if a child is interested in artificial intelligence, engaging with it under parental supervision and in a safe manner is the right approach. Technology itself is neutral. It serves whichever purpose it is used for. Artificial intelligence can be a valuable gift, but if it is used with harmful intentions, it can produce negative outcomes. Using artificial intelligence correctly and consciously is therefore extremely important.”

The California syndrome has become a civilization syndrome

Emphasizing the spread of pleasure centered life philosophy, Tarhan said: “The California syndrome has become global, so it should now be called a civilization syndrome. It has four main characteristics. The first is hedonism, which means a pleasure centered philosophy of life. People begin to see the pursuit of pleasure as the purpose of life and it becomes an ego ideal. The second is that a person who adopts hedonism becomes egocentric and develops a self-centered structure. If something serves their interest, it is considered good. If it does not, it is considered bad. In other words, the measure of value becomes personal interest and pleasure. The third characteristic is loneliness. The United Nations has identified three major dangers facing humanity in the future. The first is income inequality, the second is climate change, and the third is loneliness. We may not be fully aware of this, but the Western world is clearly seeing the consequences of loneliness.”

Not self-actualization but self-transcendence

Speaking about the theory of multiple intelligences, Tarhan said: “Gardner is the founder of the theory of multiple intelligences. In this theory, six virtues and twenty-four values are defined. There is a character strengths scale and there is even an online assessment tool that we also use in Türkiye. When a person fills out this character strengths inventory, values such as justice, generosity and self-transcendence all become visible. These values are actually connected to Maslow’s well-known hierarchy of psychosocial needs. In Maslow’s theory, self-actualization is known to be at the top of the hierarchy. However, Maslow and his colleagues later changed this. The revision was published in 2017. At the top is no longer self-actualization but self-transcendence. They placed self-transcendence at the highest point. Spiritual needs and values such as helping others have been moved to the top of the psychosocial needs hierarchy.”

“The ability to correct negativity is taken away from the individual”

Tarhan emphasized that capitalism sells optimism to hide its own desperation and continued: “They took spiritual wisdom, systematized it, developed it according to the era and presented it to us but without giving credit. In reality, it is all rooted in Anatolian wisdom. What matters is that it serves humanity regardless of who conveys it. There is a Croatian philosopher, Zizek, who has very interesting ideas. He says that mindfulness is the new trap of capitalism. Capitalism now sells optimism to conceal its own helplessness. The capitalist system programs mindfulness with the message ‘Everyone should be optimistic, do not worry about anything.’ This takes away the person’s ability to correct negativity. He says that it is now used to cover things up and sedate the masses. This is called cruel optimism.”

Think of three positive things when a negative thought comes to mind

Speaking about new discoveries regarding brain function, Tarhan said: “There is a new discovery in neuroscience. We have been following it for the last five or six months. It is about how the brain operates. There is a salience network in the brain, which is the network of significance, and in the center of the brain there is the default mode network, known as the meaning network. When the brain is in automatic mode, this meaning network is active. The default mode network is one of the first networks to operate in the brain. It writes a scenario, scans the past, makes predictions about the future and decides for the present. While doing this, the salience network is also active. When you tell a person ‘Do not think of the pink elephant’, they immediately start thinking of the pink elephant. The same happens when you give the brain a command about anything negative. The brain interprets it as ‘This person finds this topic important’ and highlights it, constantly bringing negative elements to the forefront. In this situation, the brain perceives it as a reward and releases dopamine, saying ‘This is very important.’ The person begins to take pleasure in fighting that thought and this pleasure worsens the condition. Positive psychotherapy says this: When a negative thought comes to mind, replace it with three positive things and make it your personal task. Even keep a gratitude journal and write down three good things you had today. Write it every day and look back after a week. When you do this, the brain starts functioning with a positive focus. The foundation of this approach is very strong in neuroscience.”

“Artificial intelligence can seriously harm people who lack knowledge”

Tarhan stressed the importance of using artificial intelligence in the right place and for the right purpose. He said: “Artificial intelligence can seriously harm people who do not have knowledge. It can never be a therapist. Artificial intelligence cannot become a therapist but it can make the therapist’s work easier. For example, a therapy process that would normally take ten sessions can be reduced to five. Think of it like an X ray. It collects information, analyzes it and presents a data output. If you use it correctly, you make fewer mistakes. The same applies to medication treatment. There are many treatment guidelines and programs now. We ask the artificial intelligence, ‘Based on this personality test, what options should we consider’ and it brings up options that we might not think of. This is actually a good thing. The same applies to therapy. If a person treats artificial intelligence as a therapist and accepts everything it says without questioning it, psychosis may develop. Indeed, there are cases of people who have committed suicide after talking to artificial intelligence and people who have experienced psychosis. Artificial intelligence is a very new technology. Just as a chemical weapon destroys a person instead of eliminating disease when it is used incorrectly, artificial intelligence also becomes harmful when misused. Using it in the right place and for the right purpose is extremely important.”

“Developing age appropriate algorithms is essential”

Emphasizing that digital detox should become a habit, Tarhan said: “Algorithms must be rewritten for children. Developing age-appropriate algorithms is essential. This needs to become a cultural practice, meaning it should not be random or careless. Maybe systems will improve in five or ten years, but an entire generation may be lost. For this reason, each of us must take our own precautions. We must first take care of ourselves and then our children and loved ones. We cannot completely isolate ourselves or our children from society but if everyone at home constantly keeps their phones, computers, and tablets on, if family communication drops to zero and everyone lives only in the digital environment, those children have a very high risk of becoming victims of the digital world. For this reason, doing a digital detox once a week or at least for half a day is extremely beneficial. Let everyone in the family turn off their phones. If a whole day is not possible, half a day is fine, and if that is not possible even one hour helps. Put the phones aside, sit down and talk, chat, do things together. Very significant benefits are observed in people who make digital detox a habit.”

“Where there is love and a structured environment, trust emerges”

Stating that there is no need to fear the digital world if there is a structured environment, Tarhan added: “Where there is love and a structured environment, trust emerges. A mother may say ‘I give love’ but sometimes the love is unbalanced and inconsistent. This does not work. The biggest problems arise in inconsistent discipline. There is love but the discipline is inconsistent, the mother acts one way, the father another way. One rule in the morning, another in the evening. This is why consistency is very important. A structured environment creates trust. In a family, the rules must be clear. For example, when school begins, the rules are set together with the child. ‘You will be at school at this hour, after you return home you have two hours of free time and then study begins.’ We plan the day with the child. The mother follows this, the child follows this. If the mother says ‘Start studying’ one minute early, the child says ‘I still have one more minute.’ This clarity is good. Once the child learns this, the mother does not even need to say ‘Start studying.’ If a child is raised in a structured environment, the child becomes secure. In that case there is no need to fear artificial intelligence or the digital world.”

A plaque was presented to Prof. Tarhan

Following the talk, Bursa Technical University Rector Prof. Naci Çağlar presented a plaque to Prof. Nevzat Tarhan, psychiatrist and President of Üsküdar University.

The highly attended program concluded with a group photo.