PORTLAND, Ore. — A Portland startup was one of 13 companies that just won a big award for developing a new platform to get people off their phones by using positive psychology.
DoCurious competed against more than 140 companies around the world in the Global Health Initiative competition. The goal of the competition was to find companies with ideas and projects that could make a large impact on huge numbers of people in a short period of time. DoCurious was the only non-medical company to win.
While the new platform dares people to get out and try something new doing what it calls “goal-oriented activities,” people will ironically need a screen to get started.
Dr. Douglas Perednia is the founder and CEO.
"We dare you to do one thing you've never done before. We don't care what it is. We'll give you options. If you don't like these 10 things, here's another 10 and another 10,” he said.
Perednia’s idea is based on positive psychology. The website and soon app will encourage users to complete challenges — things you may have never done, from rock climbing to getting a pilot’s license, even baking a pie from scratch. The cost ranges from free to thousands of dollars.
“The average young person now, 60% of them say that the way they spend their free time is either dull, uninteresting and not particularly challenging,” Perednia said.
“About 42% of the members of Gen Z actually have a psychiatric or psychological diagnosis, a mental health diagnosis,” he added. “The suicide rate is unfortunately also increasing.”
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He said screen aren’t inherently bad — it’s just the time we spend on them that he says causes us to neglect other things that make life worth living.
“The big tech companies use behavioral psychology, one more click and one more swipe [...] the answer has to be psychological,” he explained.
Perednia said activities offered will run the gamut in terms of skill level. He hopes people will eventually find something they love to do and maybe find other people they can do it with.
“It’s been studied for 40 years, and it turns out that doing goal-oriented challenges is one of the most rewarding things you can possibly do psychologically,” said Perednia. “Our goal is to try to make everyone's life the most rewarding, best life it can possibly be.”
Perednia is continually looking for local companies to partner up with, who have activities that could be turned into a goal-oriented challenge.
Visit www.docurious.com for more information. Perednia said it’s currently in testing and any users are encouraged to send in feedback.
If you or someone you know needs help, call or text 988, the National Suicide Prevention Hotline, open 24-7. The Oregon YouthLine can also be reached at 877-968-8491.