What is doomscrolling? What psychologists need you to know
Seeking out bad news
I first discovered the r/Collapse Reddit community – an online board to “discuss the potential collapse of global civilisation” – after interviewing a prominent climate change scientist for an article. During the course of our interview, he confessed that all the projections they were putting out there were “overly rosy.”
He and his fellow researchers felt compelled to water things down for the public, he said, out of fear we would all just give up – instead of take action – if they told us the truth.
I was not a fan of this scientific whitewashing. After our discussion, I started looking for more information about the range of projections on climate change, not just the palatable ones researchers felt like they “should” say. This was how I ended up at r/Collapse and found my people, which is to say a group of slightly paranoid, give-it-to-me-straight realists who also aren’t getting much sleep.
It actually made me feel better. It’s not a collective of extremist doomsday preppers (although there are some of those). Rather, it is made up mostly of people like me, those who “seek to deepen our understanding of collapse while providing mutual support, not to document every detail of our demise.”
I loved it so much I didn’t want to admit it might be turning into a problem. What I was doing has a name: doomscrolling.
What is doomscrolling?
This is the tendency to continue to surf or scroll through bad news, even though that news may be perceived as saddening, disheartening, or depressing. In addition to Reddit, my Twitter feed is an ode to the bleak. (Somehow, perhaps as a coping technique, I’ve managed to mostly keep my Facebook and Instagram shiny, happy places.)
I’m not alone in this habit. For me, it started years ago with that interview, but for many people, the craziness of 2020 is how they got caught up in doomscrolling. And it makes sense, says Ken Yeager, PhD, a researcher and associate professor of medicine who leads The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center’s Stress, Trauma, and Resilience Program.
“This year has been a year of unprecedented changes,” he says. “The pandemic, electoral issues, the economy, protests and public expression of raw emotions, natural disasters have all contributed to the phenomena known as doomscrolling.
“Doomscrolling is the modern-day equivalent to watching a train wreck,” he adds. “It’s really very difficult to look away.”
It should also be noted that this isn’t just an accidental phenomenon or a personality quirk. It’s also a business decision. From politicians to tech companies to mobile phone carriers, all kinds of people profit from us being overly engaged with technology.
The more often they can get us to click, the more money they make, says Jeff Gardere, PhD, a psychologist and associate professor. It’s in their best interest to do whatever it takes to keep us reading, even if it’s not in our best interest.
“The phone is our connection with the outside world. We are inundated with bad or negative news and it happens every few minutes,” he says. “The sense of urgency, excitement, and danger can become very addictive.”
Why do we doomscroll?
Doomscrolling serves a real purpose in people’s lives, some helpful and some harmful.
People have different reasons for doing it and it’s important to understand what’s motivating your news habit, says psychiatrist Leela R. Magavi, MD.
To try to make uncertain events make sense
It’s easy to feel helpless and scared during these uncertain times and some people find that staying informed, even through doomscrolling, helps them feel comforted and in control.
Understanding why and how something is happening can help it to feel less frightening. “It’s a way to understand or try to make sense of very uncertain times,” Yeager says.
A sense of connectedness
Another benefit is feeling connected to others who have similar concerns and worries or are in similar situations, Dr Magavi says. You feel like you’re part of a group and you’re not alone.
Reassurance that you’re okay
The third potentially useful reason, and perhaps the most surprising one, is that it can be a way to reassure yourself that things actually aren’t as terrible as they seem and that you’re doing alright, Yeager says.
For instance, seeing news about a devastating hurricane on the other side of the world may make you grateful you live in a place where such weather events are uncommon.
Feeling prepared
“For some people, it can be empowering that they are on top of the latest disaster before other people,” Gardere says. “It’s almost like being ahead of the game.” This can also be helpful for knowing what you should be doing now to prepare.
For instance, perhaps you need to pack a “go bag” in case of fire, while others may want to stock up on toilet paper in the face of new lockdowns.
Fear of missing out
Of course, there are also negative reasons people doomscroll. Top of that list: a deep-seated fear that you are missing out, Dr Magavi says.
You’ve heard of FOMO (fear of missing out) for parties and weddings? Well, it turns out that you can get FOMO for natural disasters and wars, too.
Constantly reading bad news can be a way to reassure yourself that you’re not missing anything important, she says.
A way to manage anxiety
Many people who doomscroll use it as a way to manage their anxiety about events they can’t control, Dr Magavi says. Unfortunately, this habit can quickly become a compulsion.
You start out doomscrolling to relieve your anxiety and then the bad news only creates more of it.
Boredom
Boredom stemming from being trapped indoors during restrictions is another reason many of us start doomscrolling, Gardere says. Our phones are the one thing that’s with us no matter where we are.
We’ve become more dependent on them for everything from information to entertainment to connection, he says. Some people scratch that itch with Candy Crush. Others read through alarming news reports.
Hypervigilance
Doomscrolling may be a manifestation of a deeper issue – hypervigilance, Yeager says. People who are in a state of hypervigilance have a heightened sensitivity to potential dangers and are constantly scanning their environment for threats.
It exists as a way to help people monitor and escape dangers. But the problem is that when everything feels dangerous, then you’re on constant alert, which is mentally and physically exhausting.
You’re addicted to your phone
Every time you pick up your phone, you’re rewarded with a little hit of dopamine, leading many people to pick up their phone 75 to 100 or even more times per day, Yeager says.
What’s one major way your phone can capture your attention? A big, negative news headline. And before you know it, you’re doomscrolling through all the headlines. “Picking up your phone is consistently rewarding and it can be very hard to break away from news feeds,” he says.
It feels like doing something
While each of these reasons resonates with me on some level, for me personally, I think I like doomscrolling because it feels like I’m doing something.
It gives me the illusion of action without the responsibility or fear of stepping outside my academic comfort zone and, you know, actually doing something about all these problems.
Written by Charlotte Hilton Anderson. This article first appeared in Reader’s Digest. Find more of what you love from the world’s best-loved magazine, here’s our best subscription offer.