Life was a lot simpler when we all relied on basic SMS, email, and AOL instant messenger (remember that?). Now there are a multitude of popular message apps. It's overwhelming. We will attempt to summarize the top 7 in the US:
Your patients are likely using 2 of these messaging apps daily. They are also likely on social networks (e.g., Instagram, TikTok, etc.). Understanding where they are spending the majority of their daily interactions might provide a glimpse into their lives.
For example, someone who talks about Discord is likely a gamer interacting with other gamers. Gaming is a great hobby and should not be discouraged at any age. However, observing your patient on Discord all day while neglecting family and friends around them can be perceived as escapism or addiction.
Advice to consider during sessions.
- WhatsApp: Now owned by Facebook, WhatsApp is the most widely used messaging app in the world. It is specifically known for “End-to-end Encryption”, which means message content is completely hidden when traveling the server pathways between sender and receiver. In other words, not even FB, Whatsapp or the government can ever see your messages.
- FB Messenger: Originating as simple 1:1 messages between Facebook friends, FB messenger is a standalone app enabling video chat, message, payments etc. FB Messenger has improved its methods of keeping random people from messaging you. Instagram messages is also conducted via FB Messenger.
- Snap: Snap originated as a messaging app where photos disappeared. The idea was to foster genuine, non-polished posts by eliminating the fear of permanence. It is now a big social media platform commonly used by Gen Z and younger millennials.
- Discord: Discord is tailored to gamers. Think of a community behind specific game titles, where gamers can play an online game and chat with each other via Discord, simultaneously. Discord has also been used to create NFT (non-fungible token) communities. We’ll get into NFTs in the next newsletter
- Signal: This app was born strictly for privacy. Signal has security features that block screenshots,end-to-end encryption (refer to Whatsapp bullet) and can set messages to disappear using a timer.
- Telegram: Similar to signal, this is a popular message app that focuses on privacy and security. Telegram is very popular in Iran.
- Corporate - Teams/Slack: Lumping Microsoft Teams and Slack together, these are typically used in the office. Employees can directly message each other and create “channels” (multi-user chats grouped under a theme/project).
Your patients are likely using 2 of these messaging apps daily. They are also likely on social networks (e.g., Instagram, TikTok, etc.). Understanding where they are spending the majority of their daily interactions might provide a glimpse into their lives.
For example, someone who talks about Discord is likely a gamer interacting with other gamers. Gaming is a great hobby and should not be discouraged at any age. However, observing your patient on Discord all day while neglecting family and friends around them can be perceived as escapism or addiction.
Advice to consider during sessions.
- Privacy and Safety: While all the popular messaging apps try to do their best at securing their platforms, remind your patient that nothing is 100% safe. Practice due diligence when interacting with strangers and always assume hacks can happen no matter what.
- Corporate Chat: Many patients will leave the office and continue to chat on Slack or Teams (since it is also on their phone). It is easy for work conversations to evolve into non-work discussions. Remind your patient that most companies store the messages and log keystrokes for audit
- Multi-Factor Authentication: Remind your patient that the more chat applications used, the more targets they open themselves up for hacks. Ensure they have alternative verification methods to restrict others who have their password from logging in (e.g., SMS verification, Google Authenticator, etc.)