The Doomscrolling Dilemma: Why We Can't Stop and How It Impacts Our Brain

By Dhruvi Tarpara, Northeastern University

Doomscrolling, a term popularized during the pandemic, refers to the habit of endlessly scrolling through news websites or social media platforms, often consuming upsetting or distressing content. While staying informed is important, this behavior can create a vicious cycle that amplifies stress and anxiety, leaving users feeling even more overwhelmed. The nature of doomscrolling, combined with the negative effects of algorithmic platform design—where user engagement is prioritized over well-being—intensifies these feelings. To reduce the impact of doomscrolling, potential solutions include greater algorithm transparency, stronger government policies, and changes in personal habits.

Neurologic and Psychologic Effects

Doomscrolling's influence stems from the actions’ ability to reorganize neural connections through neuroplasticity, potentially causing long-term alterations in brain function and structure. Doomscrolling causes the brain’s stress response system to release stress hormones, including cortisol, leading to chronic tension and anxiety. It also overloads cognitive capacity, causing mental fatigue and a decrease in cognitive performance.

Doomscrolling effects several areas of the brain, including those responsible for processing emotions, regulating impulses, and managing stress. For instance, the prefrontal cortex, which controls decision-making and emotional regulation, is disrupted. This can make it harder for individuals to control their emotions or resist the urge to keep scrolling. As a result, repeated exposure to distressing news increases anxiety and impulsivity, while also making it harder to focus or think clearly. This disruption impairs decision-making, as individuals prioritize immediate emotional gratification over long-term mental well-being. Additionally, the amygdala, which is responsible for fear and anxiety, becomes overstimulated when confronted with distressing news, making such content feel even more emotionally intense and anxiety-inducing.

The brain’s reward system also plays a role. The nucleus accumbens releases dopamine, a "feel-good" neurochemical, which encourages users to keep scrolling for that brief emotional reward, despite the negative consequences. Another brain chemical, norepinephrine, is linked to the body’s stress response and can make the behavior feel compulsive. These chemicals fluctuate during doomscrolling, creating a vicious cycle that leaves people hyper-vigilant and makes it more difficult to stop.

Other parts of the brain are affected as well. The ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC), which helps control mood and impulses, becomes weaker, making it harder to stop consuming distressing content. Additionally, the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), responsible for focus and decision-making, can become overstimulated, leading to difficulty thinking clearly and focusing on important tasks. Studies on Problematic Internet Use (PUI) show that long-term internet use can even shrink gray matter in areas of the brain involved in processing rewards and self-control. These changes can make it even harder to resist the urge to scroll, reinforcing the cycle of doomscrolling.

Figure 1: Experiments contributing to these brain clusters all indicated reduced gray matter in PUI participants compared to controls.

From a psychological perspective, doomscrolling is associated with increased anxiety, depression, and sleep problems. Doomscrolling patterns are also influenced by personality traits: people with strong neuroticism are more susceptible, while people with high conscientiousness and agreeableness scores are less engaged. Furthermore, FOMO and social media addiction are linked to doomscrolling, which intensifies compulsive behaviors.

Figure 2:

Doomscrolling was positively correlated with neuroticism, social media addiction, fear of missing out , and social media daily hours. In addition, doomscrolling was significantly related with Twitter use.

Figure 3: Network analysis for doomscrolling. Blue lines represent positive correlations and red lines represent negative correlations. Note. DoomS: doomscrolling; SMA: social media addiction; FoMO: fear of missing out; SMdh: social media daily hours; SMpu: social media platforms used; O: openness; C: conscientiousness; E: extraversion; A: agreeableness; N: neuroticism.

Platform Design and Engagement Traps

Social media networks and news applications employ algorithmic systems designed to keep users engaged by triggering these psychological effects. With the high volume of negative content online, just one piece of bad news can often trigger other negative news. This is similar to a slot machine, as users are rewarded with intermittent releases of dopamine from likes, endorsements, or even sensational headlines. Negativity bias is the tendency to pay more attention to negative information than to positive information. It ensures that the brain prioritizes threatening information. Platforms like X, formally known as Twitter, amplify emotionally charged material, particularly anger, which nurtures engagement and increases existential worry and pessimism. The addictive nature of doomscrolling, combined with impulsivity, depression, and anxiety about the future, makes it difficult to break free.

Strategies to Reduce Doom Scrolling

To combat doomscrolling, it involves individual and systemic efforts, media literacy education, redesigning digital environments, and policy advocacy interventions. Personally controlling the use of apps daily or setting “quiet hours” helps cut back on spontaneous engagement. One study found that reducing time spent on social media to just a half hour each day reduced doomscrolling significantly and improved mental clarity. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can retrain harmful thought patterns, and graduated detox processes like tech-free weekends may help reset the brain's reward system.

At the systemic level, tech firms should implement algorithmic transparency, enabling users to understand and manage content algorithms. By limiting exposure to unfavorable news and enforcing regulatory oversight, manipulative design can be suppressed. Platforms can also introduce customizable time limits or wind-down windows that prompt users to leave the app if they have been scrolling too long. TikTok, for example, recently added a new meditation feature meant to help teens unwind when they browse TikTok after 10 PM. Governments can also require platforms to ensure programming accountability and algorithmic transparency. A real-world example of such policy is the UK's Online Safety Bill, which includes provisions for greater transparency around algorithms and aims to protect users from harmful content, including misinformation and addictive behaviors.

Conclusion

Doomscrolling is more than just a bad habit; it is a deeply rooted behavior that is difficult to stop without conscious effort, as it is influenced by both platform design and brain chemistry. Constant exposure to distressing content alters brain chemistry, increases anxiety, and impairs cognitive function, creating a vicious cycle. However, people can mitigate the effects of doomscrolling through cognitive behavioral strategies, digital detoxification methods, and mindful consumption. Digital companies and policymakers share a responsibility to implement ethical design choices and transparency measures that prioritize user well-being over engagement. Specifically, tech companies should be required to disclose how their algorithms amplify harmful content and offer users more control over the content they see. Policymakers should push for stronger regulation, such as algorithmic transparency laws and mandatory digital well-being features, to ensure that platforms prioritize mental health alongside user engagement. Addressing doomscrolling requires balancing individual accountability with systemic reforms that protect mental health and promote healthier online environments.