Becoming overly absorbed in bad news, or "doomscrolling" on social media or the internet in general can be detrimental to one’s overall physical heath, a recent study by Australian experts warned.
For their study, Kate Mannell, Research Fellow in Digital Childhoods at Deakin University, Australia, and James Meese, Research Fellow, Technology, Communication and Policy Lab, at RMIT University Melbourne, interviewed 20 participants from Australia's state of Victoria, which experienced the country’s most sustained COVID-19 pandemic lockdown measures.
Forced to spend a lot of time indoors, people revealed how they increasingly became aware that "doomscrolling" made them feel anxious, angry or distracted from everyday tasks.
Individuals with a pronounced tendency to continue to surf or scroll through bad news, be it the pandemic developments, or news of violence, mass shootings or, for example, devastating wildfires, found themselves in a constant state of high alert.
A vicious cycle can develop, experts claim, with such people obsessing over the news and checking for updates around the clock. However, the more they do so, the more it interferes with their daily routine. Individuals can succumb to mental problems, such as anxiety, depression and sleep disorders. In worst-case scenarios, sufferers might commit suicide.
By keeping a person up at night, "doomscrolling" may bring on sleep deprivation, which, in turn, exacerbates stress and perpetuates the vicious cycle eroding one’s wellbeing. In some cases, people susceptible to "doomsurfing" begin to overindulge in non-nutritious foods, undermining their health even further, warn experts.
As part of the study, Australians were asked what tips they could offer on how to break the habit.
Choosing to take control and limit news exposure via diverse strategies helped people to cope, according to the study. People reported that trying to set aside a specific time for watching the news had a positive impact. Several participants revealed they had unfollowed news-related accounts on social media and deliberately turned off push notifications for news and social media apps.
Sleeping TV Man
© AP Photo / Fernando Vergara
Other participants went further and deleted browser bookmarks to news sites or deleted news and social media apps from their phones. Refraining from taking their phone into their bedroom at night also helped.
According to the authors of the research, the findings feed into growing evidence that indicates the benefits of partial news avoidance.