Using social media as a tool to combat boredom is not always justified, according to the American Psychological Association. They found that actively scrolling through feeds can worsen the feeling of boredom rather than alleviate it.
The authors conducted an online survey with hundreds of volunteers and discovered that after just ten minutes of scrolling through the YouTube feed, individuals begin to lose interest in the activity. The study supports previous sociological claims that using digital media to combat boredom is ineffective and may even exacerbate it, notes NIX Solutions.
Hypotheses on Why Boredom Increases
Scientists put forward two hypotheses to explain this phenomenon. The first suggests that boredom initially acts as an incentive to switch to another video due to a person’s desire to avoid uninteresting content. The second hypothesis posits that it’s not the quality of the content that increases boredom, but the constant urge to switch between videos.
Potential Solution: Engaging Content Fully
The constant change of clips prevents individuals from fully immersing themselves in the content. To address this issue, the authors of the experiment suggest watching films from beginning to end. By doing so, individuals can fully engage their attention and train themselves to consume content sequentially. We’ll keep you updated on further developments in this research.