Introduction to Doom Scrolling
There are different psychological and physical changes that have occurred due to technological advancements. This has been illustrated with the use of advanced informative social media platforms coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic have been identified as some of the main precursors of contemporary doom scrolling (Gume,2024). Doom scrolling refers to the habit of continually consuming negative news, this is typically associated with heightened anxiety, which negatively impacts an individual's well-being (Turk-Kurtca & Kocaturk, 2025). It (Doom scrolling) is a vicious process in which an individual seeks negative information that conforms to their pre-existing beliefs (Pas, 2023), which is compulsive and uncontrollable, even when it provokes despair and unhappiness (Kartol, Uztemur et al, 2023).
To this end, doom scrolling is a relatively new notion that has arisen due to the consumption of excessive unpleasant negative news, and is implicated with a myriad of negative consequences such as reduced psychological resilience, decreased mental well-being and emotional disruptions due to continued social media use (Gunn, 2024). This is because an overflow of fear-inducing information triggers psychological stress responses, such as the fight or flight mechanisms that are in and vary per individual. These stress responses are expressed differently from person to person, as others may experience insomnia due to blue light exposure, this constitutes a reduction in melatonin production or vicarious trauma due to repeated exposure to others trauma and intrusive thoughts (George, George et al, 2024). Other studies suggest doom scrolling is a coping behavior amongst individuals, particularly young adults, with high levels of generalized anxiety disorder (Hu, 2023).
Doom Scrolling as a Coping Mechanism in Young Adults
It is crucial to comprehend the interactions between social media consumption and emotional wellbeing in young adulthood. This is due to the significant life transitions experienced during adolescence which are influenced by doom scrolling when experienced in different social contexts and individual stages of biological and psychological maturation(Hu, 2023). For instance, an individual with elevated levels of depression is susceptible to a cycle of doom scrolling (Pas, 2023) and an anxious individual's interaction with social media would determine how prone they are to developing doom scrolling habits (Hu, 2023) in relation to their immediate and global environment. Therefore understanding these interactions will help alleviate any negative strains that are caused on physical health, mental health and neurological health (Rodrigues, 2022). Moreover, this could help to improve awareness in young adults permitting them to adopt digital hygiene mechanisms that contribute to improved mental well-being, affective regulation and minimized experiences of anxiety, fear, apprehensive hopelessness and uncertainty (Rodrigues, 2022).
A study by Shabang & Hwang et al (2024) contributes to this notion, as results indicate doom scrolling contributes to the development of an increased sense of existentialism, existential anxiety and pessimism associated with human nature. This in turn leads to the development of psychological disorders and dysfunctional behaviours due to the constant intake of excessive negative news, bias and framing promoted by engaging in this habit (Shabahang, Hwang et al, 2024). Existential anxiety is provoked, due to the insecurity experienced when exposed to disasters or mass traumatic events leading to evoking questions of the nature of humanity, life and death which contributes to the development of negatively construed perceptions towards justice and humankind (Shabahang, Hwang et al, 2024) and negative news acts as a stressor that triggers affective reactions (Shabahang & Aruguete et al,2022).
Abstract
Education is one of the key factors of a child's future opportunities and social mobility. Although Kenya has been implementing various educational reforms for decades to increase access to quality education, socioeconomic and geographical factors continue to play a major role in determining access in the country. This article puts forward the view that poverty, gender differences and unequal distribution of education resources are responsible for the perpetuation of educational inequalities in Kenya. The study builds on Karl Marx's Conflict Theory and explores how current social and economic inequalities persist and stifle the educational opportunities and outcomes of less privileged learners. The article examines some of the challenges faced, including low infrastructure, low teacher numbers, unequal funding, and high drop-out rates among children from low-income families, using secondary data sourced from government reports, international organizations and scholarly literature. The study shows that while education reforms have led to greater enrollment, structural socio-economic inequalities remain to be a threat to equal access to quality education in Kenya.
Mindfulness practices in daily life can, and have, a mediating role in social media use and existential anxiety (Taskin, Kurtulus et al, 2024). The pool of negative news is exacerbated by influences of algorithms, click baits and Predictive AI which create a sense of addiction amongst users with the use of emotional triggers that play on people’s vulnerabilities (George, George et al, 2024). Meditation, however, gives individuals a chance to consciously moderate and regulate their content preferences and consumption as an attempt to reverse the effects of an eroding mental health due to the exposure to shear mass of negative news. In the short term this would also reduce the chances of individuals experiencing “stress hangovers” which are described as periods of impaired functioning leading to burnout and insomnia (George et al, 2024).
Climate Change Doom scrolling and Its Psychological Effects
Moreover, Studies indicate a direct correlation between climate change related doom scrolling and heightened anxiety (Hartlieb, 2024), which further ties into the need to consciously moderate how we consume media. It is suggested having high social support in times of increased negative climate change related news reduces the likelihood of eco-anxiety, depression and PTSD symptoms developing (Hartlieb, 2024). This is because social cohesion is an aspect of human wellbeing (Fan , Jiang & Mostafavi, 2020) and it also aids in communal disaster recovery due to variables such as social participation, social capital and a sense of community (Sobhaninia, 2024).
Doom scrolling has also been shown to significantly negatively impact employee performance due to increased distractions, and the overall negative impact negative news has on perceived performance (Chand & Mishra, 2024).This reduces work engagement amongst employees (Hughes & Keith et al, 2024) This is due to the formation of hopeless and pessimistic perceptions based on the future (Kartol, Uztemur et al, 2023) which has societal impacts on productivity and health care costs due to increased stress and anxiety and their effects such as burnout or alcohol consumption on individual well being (Cheug,2024).
Balancing Media Consumption for Physical and mental Well-Being
Other individual moderators such as vigilance and uncertainty also contribute to doom scrolling (Pas, 2023), as negative news and the perceived sense of no control can contribute to depression, complicated grief, substance abuse, helplessness and stress (Pikhala,2020) as they experience threatening physical and psychological states of existence. Excessive doom scrolling has also led to physical conditions such as arthritis, brain tumors and carpal tunnel syndrome (Rodrigues, 2022). A study by Cheug (2024) discovered during the COVID-19 pandemic individuals without standardised workplaces had experiences of musculoskeletal discomfort when working from home.
In summary, doom scrolling is a manageable habit and its effects can be avoided when individuals set timers to scroll, meditate, exercise, take up hobbies, spend time with family and friends and take direct action to change news feeds into positive ones (Rodrigues, 2022). Mental wellbeing can further be managed by mitigating excessive consumption of negative valenced media and being aware of balancing the negative information consumed with positive information (Kartol, Uztemur et al, 2023). It is also suggested when alerting the public, journalists must formulate a positive narrative avoiding a too-late-to-help narrative and strive to balance the message of intensity and optimism in communications (Gow, 2022).
Gow, R. (2022). Doomscrolling: How Science Journalism Can Fight Climate Despair
Pihkala, P. P. (2020). Anxiety and the Ecological Crisis: An Analysis of Eco-Anxiety and 37 Climate Anxiety. Sustainability, 12(19), 7836. https://doi.org/10.3390/su1219783 Victor Rodrigues, E. (2023). Doomscrolling – threat to Mental Health and Well-being: A Review. International Journal of Nursing Research, 8(4), 127–130. https://doi.org/10.31690/ijnr.2022.v08i04.002
Taskin, S., Yildirim Kurtulus, H., Satici, S. A., & Deniz, M. E. (2024). Doomscrolling and mental well‐being in social media users: A serial mediation through mindfulness and secondary traumatic stress. Journal of Community Psychology, 52(3), 512-524.
R. Shabahang, M.S. Aruguete, S. Kim, A.A. Hosseinkhanzadeh, K. Kakabaraee
“Give your thumb a break” from surfing tragic posts: Potential corrosive consequences of social media users' doomscrolling, Media Psychology, 26 (4) (2022), pp. 460-479, 10.1080/15213269.2022.2157287
Shabahang, R., Hwang, H., Thomas, E. F., Aruguete, M. S., McCutcheon, L. E., Orosz, G., ... & Zsila, Á. (2024). Doomscrolling Evokes Existential Anxiety and Fosters Pessimism about Human Nature? Evidence from Iran and the United States. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 100438.
Hartlieb, R. (2024). Exploring the Gender Dimension: Social Support, Doom-Scrolling, and Anxiety in Climate Change Discourse (Master's thesis, University of Twente).
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Victor Rodrigues, Elizabeth. “Doomscrolling – Threat to Mental Health and Well-Being: A Review”. International Journal of Nursing Research, vol. 8, no. 4, July 2023, pp. 127-30, doi:10.31690/ijnr.2022.v08i04.002.
Hu, X. (2023). Escape or Doomscrolling: Mood Management through Social Media Use in Young Adults with Generalized Anxiety Disorder Symptoms (Doctoral dissertation, The Ohio State University).
George, A. S., George, A. H., Baskar, T., & Karthikeyan, M. M. (2024). Reclaiming our minds: mitigating the negative impacts of excessive doomscrolling. Partners Universal Multidisciplinary Research Journal, 1(3), 17-39.
Türk-Kurtça, T., & Kocatürk, M. (2025). Beyond the Scroll: Exploring How Intolerance of Uncertainty and Psychological Resilience Explain the Association Between Trait Anxiety and Doomscrolling. Personality and Individual Differences, 233, 112919.
Pas, L. (2023). The Influence of Depression on Doom Scrolling and Climate Change Engagement: A Mixed-Methods Study (Bachelor's thesis, University of Twente).
