It is likely that, at least for certain moments, in 2020 you have done doomscrolling: it is the name with which for some months on social networks and in American newspapers the scrolling and consuming of dramatic, depressing and sad online news on the smartphone or computer. A practice that has obviously existed for some time – and which now characterizes certain professions, such as that of journalists – but which in 2020 has become much more common and widespread: because the coronavirus pandemic has caused bad news to overflow from all sides and has drastically reduced the activities that previously worked as distractions, from sports to outings in company, tendentially making us more glued to the screens. It is still a relatively new phenomenon, but various experts have already reported how – predictably – doomscrolling is deleterious to mental well-being.
In English, doom means something like “condemnation” and “misfortune”, while scrolling is the verb – now also used in Italy – which indicates scrolling down the bulletin board of a social network, or an online article, using thumb on the smartphone. Sometimes, doomsurfing is used instead of doomscrolling. Merriam Webster's dictionary has included it as one of the words it is “keeping an eye on,” but which do not yet meet the criteria to be entered as proper words.
Contributing to the fame of the term in the United States was mainly Karen Ho, a Quartz journalist who throughout the pandemic posted periodic reminders on Twitter about the importance of doing other than reading news about cases of growing contagion, about restrictions. , about the collapse of the economy, about lost jobs. Ho says the first occurrence of the word doomscrolling he found online was in October 2018, so long before the pandemic. Last October, illustrator Christoph Niemann most effectively depicted doomscrolling in an animated drawing for the New Yorker.
Doomscrolling for the @NewYorker
For more animations: https://t.co/fJGQ9vUv8e pic.twitter.com/nGoB4HLtRb
– Christoph Niemann (@abstractsunday) October 18, 2020
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Wall Street Journal reporter Nicole Nguyen has lined up a few expert opinions on the causes of this phenomenon. Clinical psychology professor Mary McNaughton-Cassill has linked it to man's innate urge to “look for threats,” be it poisonous berries or rival tribes. According to McNaughton-Cassill, we are predisposed to pay more attention to bad news than good, and when we're nervous and stressed, we trigger a natural response that raises our blood pressure and heart rate. Normally, it serves to prepare us for danger, “but it can also happen when it is not useful, such as when our boss is rude, or when we see something on TV”.
The causes of doomscrolling are not only to be found in humans, but also in technology: the algorithms that make social networks work are designed to keep people glued to their screens, and “amplify any emotions that keep us watching, especially the negative ones. David Jay of the Center for Humane Technology explained. It doesn't end there: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and the other social networks are designed as infinite message boards, where you can potentially scroll and scroll down without ever reaching an end. “This makes people never feel completely up to date. They never get the satisfaction of saying “Ah, now I understand the problem” “Coye Cheshire, professor of sociology at Berkeley, explained to the Wall Street Journal.
Speaking to NPR, clinical psychologist Amelia Aldao explained that doomscrolling forces people into a “vicious cycle of negativity” that fuels anxiety due to the continual discovery of new threats from which we instinctively feel the need to protect ourselves. Among the tips to contain this negative behavior, Aldao recommends setting timers to limit the time spent online, often wondering if what we read online is really what we were looking for and wanted to know, and try to alternate these moments with others that are only positive. , preferably offline. Twitter and Facebook responded to the Wall Street Journal by listing tools they have adopted for similar needs, such as the ability to block or mute certain accounts, or hide certain types of posts.
