The streaming trap: Is Your Loneliness Fueling Your Next Netflix Binge?
With the development of streaming platforms, the phenomenon known as binge-watching has become increasingly popular, reaching its peak with the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Watching several episodes of a series in a row intrigued scientists from Shandong University in China, who stated in their study that this phenomenon is an addiction. But why exactly does this happen?
Loneliness is the reason
The research by the scientists from China is groundbreaking because it notes the correlation between binge-watching and loneliness. They prove that not everyone who watches several episodes in a row is addicted. Considering that up to 40% of the population has access to streaming platforms, would be an enormous burden and problem. However, they point out that it is precisely through loneliness that a gap appears in distinguishing between problematic and non-problematic binge-watching.
Study was conducted on Chinese individuals who own streaming platforms and watched series for at least 3.5 hours straight and more than 4 episodes at a time per week. Measurement of addiction was based on the use of questionnaires: the Problematic Series Watching Scale, the Motivation for Watching TV Series, and a 6-item UCLA Loneliness Scale.
Two Paths to Addiction
Results from from 2 groups indicated that loneliness does not lead directly to frequent watching, but it becomes a predictor of addiction when the viewer uses media for emotion regulation. Reaserchers introduces a two-track model in which the relationship between loneliness and addiction is fully mediated by two paths.
The first of these is escapism, which is the avoidance of negative emotions by immersing oneself in a world of fiction. The second is emotional enhancement, which is the search for positive sensations in series that are lacking in real life.
Finding the Balance
Importantly, loneliness is not associated with intensive watching of a non-problematic nature. This means that healthy people can watch many episodes in a row for entertainment, but they do not do so to escape loneliness. The analisys does not indicate a specific number of the population that may be at risk of this addiction, it clearly explains that this problem is constantly deepening. Loneliness is a significant factor in many addictions, including binge-watching.
Binge-watching is relaxation until it becomes an escape from loneliness. Chinese scientists have proven that series marathons are addictive mainly when they serve to drown out difficult emotions. Some watch to fill a life void rather than for pure entertainment; therefore, their hobby can turn into an addiction requiring attention.
