We have all been guilty of endlessly scrolling through short-form content on social media. But is it becoming Generation Z’s defining bad habit?
Many of us, myself included, often lose track of time watching TikToks and Reels in the evenings—more time than we would like to admit. This made me wonder: are other under-30s experiencing the same, and is this habit changing our ability to engage with long-form content?
To find out, I visited Bournemouth University to speak with students about whether they feel short-form content is interfering with their daily lives.
Greta Gustafsson, a student at the university, admitted that doomscrolling often consumes her time. “It becomes an addictive scrolling habit, and it’s very hard to manage my time because of that. Prioritising the right things becomes difficult because I get so sucked into the content. It’s a form of escapism.”
She added: “From my own experience, when I’m in lectures, I see everyone picking up their phones every five to ten minutes. I try to be mature about it and control it in a sensible manner, but it’s not always easy.”
The science behind doomscrolling
While at Bournemouth University, I also sat down with Dr Elvira Bolot, Associate Professor in Digital Marketing, to discuss whether short-form content is truly affecting our brains or if we simply find it entertaining.
Dr Bolot explained: “What happens in our brain is a release of dopamine—it’s part of a reward system where we get entertained very quickly. As a result, we want that entertainment more frequently. Our brain becomes conditioned to keep scrolling, and before we know it, we’ve lost track of time.”
This suggests that doomscrolling is not merely a casual habit; it may be reshaping how we process information and engage with digital content.
The impact on daily life
Samara, a Young Minds Activist, shared their experience of struggling with social media use during their A-levels. “It’s ultimately a balancing act,” they said. “You want that dopamine hit, but when you go on social media, you see influencers living these seemingly perfect lives, and you feel pressured to meet that expectation.”
Now working full-time, Samara believes more needs to be done to help young people navigate social media. “We need more social communities, more places where people can come together in real life. Social media can be quite toxic. As much as it has its benefits, it can also be damaging. We need spaces that don’t foster that toxic culture.”
Is “Brain Rot” real?
While doomscrolling is often criticised, does it actually damage our brains? I put this question to Dr Karen Mansfield, who dismissed the idea that short-form content causes “brain rot.”
“Honestly, no,” she said. “‘Brain rot’ is a popular term used to describe what people think are the negative effects of social media on young people. But there’s no real evidence to suggest that consuming short-form content has a detrimental impact on brain function.”
However, not everyone agrees. Back in Bournemouth, student Hannah Clubley said that while she understands how easy it is to get absorbed in scrolling, she has not found it disruptive to her studies.
“I think it can be easy to get consumed by the content and suddenly realise, ‘where has all the time gone?’ But I’m quite disciplined, so I don’t tend to get caught up in it too much. Occasionally, I’ll allow myself an extra five minutes of scrolling, but I don’t think it has a huge impact where I’m losing hours of time.”
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The future of doomscrolling
From what I gathered, there are various reasons why people doomscroll—whether it’s a bad habit, a need for a dopamine rush, boredom, or simply enjoying the content. But it seems clear that short-form content is here to stay.
As digital platforms continue to evolve, the challenge will be balancing consumption with mindfulness. While some believe doomscrolling is rewiring our brains for the worse, others argue it’s merely a form of entertainment that needs to be managed sensibly. Whether or not Gen Z is “addicted” to doomscrolling, one thing is certain—it remains a defining aspect of how young people engage with digital media today.
