Have you ever wanted to deactivate all of your social media accounts? If so, you might be experiencing social media fatigue. There are those who cannot live offline, but some netizens will reach a burnout point with social media. While the term may not be familiar to some, it’s likely that most have experienced this.
Digital social burnout
Even with concerns over privacy, the rise of AI, and deepfakes swirling on the Internet these days, the number of social media users continues to rise. According to Statista, 4.95 billion, or 61.4% of the 5.3 billion Internet users, are using social media. This is an increase from 2022’s over 4.59 billion users worldwide. Despite the popularity of social media, not to mention the general desire to be validated and seen, burnout from it can still happen. Technopedia has described social media fatigue as “social media users’ tendency to pull back from social media when they become overwhelmed with too many social media sites, too many friends and followers, and too much time spent online maintaining these connections.”
Are you experiencing social media fatigue? Research has shown that there is a relationship between psychosocial well-being and fatigue caused by social media. Learn more here: https://t.co/NsUmlhN0vz#SocialMedia #MentalHealth #Psychology pic.twitter.com/JFv6p3bMCe
— ScienceDirect (@sciencedirect) November 28, 2019
Some cases of social media fatigue may be related to the user’s privacy concerns. There are those who only use their accounts for communication without posting or sharing anything. Others have no other choice but to sign up for social media and other communication platforms when work requires them to do so.
In most cases, burnout can come from societal pressure, with the expectation to be “perfect” all the time. This leads to exhaustion when people try to show a facade of their lifestyle online, especially when it’s different from how they actually live or feel. Meanwhile, others tend to negatively compare their lifestyle to other users online which may also lead to depression. Users can also feel their negative emotions being invalidated due to the pressure of only sharing positive things, or what some may refer to as “toxic positivity”.
New in @SciReports! Across data frm 8 countries, we find that social media fatigue can influence #misinformation belief and sharing on SM. We also find that those with low cognitive ability and high narcissism are most likely to share misinfo. due to SMF.https://t.co/p1WTLGMfhw
— Muhammad E. Rasul (@ehab_rasul) September 18, 2023
Social media fatigue can result in damaging effects. The fatigue itself means that the user is overwhelmed by the amount of socializing or information they get on social media. However, one study linked this to users being more susceptible to believing and even sharing false information on the Internet.
Conclusion
It is no secret that the world is still immersed in trending topics and viral hits on the Internet. Posting selfies and doing TikTok trends could be fun. However, it’s necessary to step back and remember that there is a life outside our screens. Doing so could help strengthen our relationship with the people physically around us. This can improve our overall communication and support our mental health.
Photo credit: The feature image has been done by Bruno Gomiero.
Source: Technopedia (Margaret Rouse) / Statista / Statista / Frontiers / Nature
