Scrolling through social media videos could increase boredom and make users feel less engaged with content.
Research published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General found that endless scrolling may make users feel less satisfied with the content they view.
“It’s common to see people switch between videos or fast-forward while watching them nowadays. We wanted to understand how this behaviour affects their viewing experiences, especially their feelings of boredom. Previous research shows that long-term boredom is linked to undesirable mental health outcomes, such as depressive symptoms, anxiety, and stress,” Katy Tam, PhD, lead author of the study and a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Toronto told Theravive.
“We found that while people fast-forward or skip videos to avoid boredom, this behavior actually increases boredom. It also makes their viewing experience less satisfying, less engaging, and less meaningful.”
The study involved seven experiments with more than 1200 participants.
In two of the experiments, the participant switched from one online video to another whenever they were bored. They expected that they would feel less boredom by switching between videos instead of watching the full video.
But this approach was found to make the participants more bored. It’s a term the researchers refer to as digital switching: switching between snippets of videos or fast forwarding through videos.
“I wouldn’t describe digital switching as a problem, but our findings suggest that it’s not a helpful response to boredom. People switch between digital content to avoid boredom, but this behavior doesn’t reduce boredom; instead, it intensifies it,” Tam said.
In one of the experiments, the participants watched a 10 minute YouTube video. They didn’t have the option to fast forward the video.
In the second part of the same experiment, the participants were able to switch freely through seven videos that were each five minutes in length within a 10 minute period.
The participants said they were less bored when they watched the full 10 minute YouTube video. They also said they found they were more satisfied with watching the full video and felt more engaged and that the experience was more meaningful than when they switched between videos.
In another experiment, participants watched a 10 minutes video in its entirety in one part of the experiment. Then in another part of the experiment they could fast forward or rewind their way through a 50 minute video over a period of 10 minutes.
The researchers found a similar finding in this experiment. The video seemed less meaningful when not watched in its entirety because people didn’t have time to properly engage with the content.
Watching short form video content on TikTok, Facebook and Youtube has become a popular pastime.
Tam says many people will make an effort to avoid feelings of restlessness that can be triggered by boredom.
“Boredom is closely linked to our attention. We feel bored when there’s a gap between how engaged we are and how engaged we want to be. Finding ways to stay focused will help reduce boredom,” Tam said.
“Boredom is an emotion that serves to inform us when an activity isn’t meaningful or fulfilling, and it motivates us to do something about it. It is functional, and its impact—whether positive or negative—depends on how we respond to it. While boredom usually comes and goes, experiencing it chronically can be concerning, as it is linked to negative mental health, learning and behavioural outcomes. For example, chronic boredom is associated with depressive symptoms, anxiety, stress, poorer academic performance and risk-taking.”
Previous research has indicated smartphone use can increase boredom, as well as undermine the enjoyment of a social situation.
Tam says that digital switching may be an associated source of boredom from smart phone use and could have mental health consequences.
She says one way to combat that is to avoid digital switching, and be more mindful when consuming content.
“Take your time before hitting the fast-forward or skip button, and find ways to stay focused while watching videos. Just as we pay for an immersive experience in a movie theater, enjoyment often comes from immersing ourselves with the videos rather than swiping through them,” Tam said.