Attention, Doom Scrollers. I’m talking to the people who use TikTok to avoid homework. To avoid responsibility. To avoid being an adult. (It’s me, I’m a Doom Scroller, and you probably are too).
TikTok, our favorite procrastination station, can have a serious impact on mental health, especially that of students. Some of the most common issues to arise are dopamine addiction leading to procrastination, body image issues and fear of missing out (FOMO).
We’re all acquainted with the short-form style of TikTok. It’s refreshing to see everyone fit what they want to say into one minute. It keeps our attention, and it’s easy to consume.
This might not seem like a problem offhand, but the one-minute videos one after another give you a dopamine hit, which becomes addictive and can suck you in for hours at a time.
The brain isn’t designed to handle this much dopamine at once either, so it essentially enters a dopamine overload state making it difficult to self-motivate and concentrate on one task.
Sophia Petrillo discusses this in her paper, What Makes TikTok so Addictive?: An Analysis of the Mechanisms Underlying the World’s Latest Social Media Craze, in Brown Undergraduate Journal of Public Health.
She says that “the infinite scroll and variable reward pattern of TikTok” increases how addictive the app is because it puts the brain in a “flow-like state”. She goes on to explain that once we’re in this “flow-like state”, we lose track of time and doom scroll. Petrillo claims TikTok users “may watch upwards of 180 videos per day on average”.
Obviously, if you’re watching 180 videos, you’re not cleaning or doing homework. Not to say there’s no place for entertainment in college life — there’s always a place for some entertainment. However, when you’re addicted to 180 videos every day, you’re not nearly as productive as you could be.
Another notable fact is that most people who get famous from TikTok are white — Janice Gassam Asare points this out in Forbes’ Does TikTok Have a Race Problem?. “In addition to racial biases which may be perpetuated by the platform’s algorithm, there are several TikTok users that criticize the platform for inequitable treatment of creators of color.”
If TikTok users of color think they need to be white to be successful, this just solidifies the outdated yet still very prominent institution of racism in America. Every skin color deserves to be recognized as beautiful and represented equally in media.
The last problem that comes up with TikTok is fear of missing out, better known as FOMO. Who doesn’t want to be on a brand trip to Turks and Caicos or Dubai?
The truth is, we’re only seeing the highlight reel. We’re never going to see every piece of someone’s life on the internet. We have a tendency as humans to compare the ugliest parts of our lives to the most beautiful parts of someone else’s. Think about the most beautiful parts of your own life every time you think about someone else’s.
All of this to say, protect yourself! Think about how much time you spent online this week and consider what it’s doing to your mental health. Maybe even challenge yourself to look at the forbidden screen time tab in your settings. It could be life-altering.
