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CATCH THE GHOST®

The Science Behind Catch the Ghost

Rewire your brain: The science-backed path to peak focus.

A stylised anatomical illustration of a human brain.

Behavior is shaped and maintained by its consequences.

Other companies use neuroscience to get you addicted to scrolling through their social media platforms. With Catch the Ghost, we use neuroscience to help you , , , and .

See the peer-reviewed research →

A 364-day streak badge on the Catch the Ghost app, with an encouragement message and a weekly streak calendar below it.
An illustrated Albert Einstein in a grey suit, the Catch the Ghost mascot of the science page.
Positive reinforcement & neurobiological reinforcement

Catch the Ghost harnesses the power of positive reinforcement, transforming each focus session into a rewarding experience. By revealing apparitions, reading their inspirational quotes, and capturing ghosts, you trigger the release of endorphins, your brain's feel-good chemicals. This neurobiological reinforcement strengthens your productivity habits, making focus and diligence a source of joy and satisfaction.

Intrinsic Motivation & Curiosity

Our app ignites your intrinsic motivation. The process of revealing apparitions, catching ghosts, and progressing through the Quest Map is inherently satisfying, tapping into your natural curiosity. This internal drive, supported by the neurological reward systems linked to dopamine, makes the journey towards your goals as rewarding as the achievements themselves.

Hyperbolic Discounting

Catch the Ghost cleverly navigates the tendency of hyperbolic discounting by offering immediate, tangible rewards. This approach aligns your short-term actions with your long-term aspirations, ensuring that the focus and productivity you cultivate today build the foundation for your future success.

Planning Fallacy

We counter the planning fallacy by encouraging a realistic, achievable pace. Catch the Ghost fosters an environment where small, consistent actions are celebrated, guiding you to accurately assess your efforts and appreciate the true value of steady progress.

Burnout

Our app is designed to prevent burnout by promoting balanced, moderated focus sessions. We understand the importance of mental well-being and ensure that Catch the Ghost supports a sustainable, healthy approach to productivity, safeguarding your enthusiasm and mental energy.

Commitment Devices

Catch the Ghost gives sessions stakes you choose. Ending a session early forfeits the apparition you were catching; the coins you have already earned are never taken. If you want stronger stakes, Deep Focus and the Sleep Timer each let you stake up to 500 coins on finishing the session: complete it and the stake returns with a 20% bonus, quit and the staked coins are forfeited. This is a classic commitment device, and the research on self-imposed stakes is consistent: a voluntarily chosen cost on abandonment strengthens follow-through more reliably than either pure reward or imposed penalties. Before any loss counts, a 60-second grace window through the iOS Live Activity and Dynamic Island lets you return without losing the session, extendable in 5-minute increments for 200 coins each, up to three extensions per session. The stakes are real; the language is neutral; the goal is commitment, not compliance.

Psychological Loss Aversion

Tapping into loss aversion, our app makes the idea of not completing a task less appealing than the satisfaction of success. This light yet effective form of negative reinforcement motivates you to maintain focus, turning the natural human tendency to avoid loss into a powerful driver of productivity and goal completion.

CATCH THE GHOST®

Our ultimate goal.

At Aeeiee we're not just creating an app; we're crafting a science-backed journey towards peak focus and productivity. By understanding and leveraging fundamental principles of neuroscience, we've developed a tool that not only enhances your focus but also reshapes your approach to work and life. Get ready to rewire your brain and embark on the path to peak focus with Catch the Ghost.

Definition

Positive Reinforcement & Neurobiological Reinforcement

Positive reinforcement occurs when a behavior is followed by a reward, increasing the likelihood of that behavior being repeated. Neurobiological reinforcement refers to the underlying brain processes involved in this mechanism, such as the release of endorphins, which serve as a natural, feel-good reward for the brain.

Definition

Intrinsic Motivation & Curiosity

Intrinsic motivation is the drive to engage in activities for their inherent satisfaction, rather than for some external reward. It's linked to the brain's response to novelty and exploration, often governed by dopamine pathways associated with reward and motivation.

Definition

Hyperbolic Discounting

Hyperbolic discounting is the tendency to prefer smaller, immediate rewards over larger, delayed rewards. This bias is thought to be linked to the brain's reward system, which is wired to prioritize immediate gratification.

Definition

Planning Fallacy

The planning fallacy is the tendency to underestimate the time, costs, and risks of future actions while overestimating the benefits. It reflects the cognitive bias where the brain optimistically projects future outcomes.

Definition

Burnout

Burnout is a state of mental, emotional, and often physical exhaustion caused by prolonged stress or overwork. It's associated with decreased productivity and can be linked to reduced activity in brain regions responsible for motivation and emotional regulation.

Definition

Commitment Device

A commitment device is a choice you make now that raises the cost of abandoning your own plan later. Behavioral research, from Ulysses contracts to deposit contracts, finds that self-imposed, voluntarily chosen stakes are among the most reliable ways to follow through on an intention.

Definition

Psychological Loss Aversion

Loss aversion is a cognitive bias where the pain of losing is psychologically more impactful than the pleasure of gaining. It's rooted in the brain's natural aversion to loss and the strong motivation to avoid negative outcomes.