he Excessive use of social networks It’s often called “behavioral addiction,” but there’s reason to believe that adult users who use Instagram frequently They overestimate their addiction To that platform.
The perception of this addiction “may arise from the frequent categorization of social networks as… Addiction (versus habit makers) by popular media,” the published research notes Scientific reports.
The results of the study indicate that for the majority of social media users, there is “excessive” consumption. The motive is the habit, not the actual addiction“, write researchers led by the California Institute of Technology in the US.
“Apps are intentionally designed to create powerful habits.”
Ian AndersonOne of the study’s authors explained in an interview with the Caltech Academic Journal that he knows firsthand that “Apps are intentionally designed to create habits Strong” in consumers.
However, Anderson points out that the research led them to conclude that “an addiction approach can, in fact, be stigmatizing and harmful.”
In addition, Anderson and her co-author, Wendy Woodconsidered that misunderstanding of excessive social media use as an addiction “can turn users away from effective strategies that could be used Reducing overuse habits“.
The team conducted a study on two samples in which they participated 1,204 American adults With an average age of 44 years.
With the first sample 380 Instagram users They described how addicted they felt to that platform and were then assessed for symptoms of addictive use.
the Addiction to a substance or action It is usually characterized by a range of symptoms that include difficulties in controlling use, feelings of cravings, withdrawal symptoms, and continuing to use despite negative consequences or risk of harm.
A 18% of people They were, at least, “somewhat in agreement” on that They were addicted to Instagram (5% “strongly agreed”), only 2% showed symptoms indicating a possible risk of addiction.
The authors explored a possible reason for this discrepancy, for which HEvaluating descriptions of social networking use in published articles In US media between November 2021 and November 2024.
They have determined 4,383 articles mentioned the phrase “social media addiction” and 50 with the phrase “social media habit.”
This data indicates that Frequent use of social media tends to be described as an addiction In articles American journalistsWhich can affect how people perceive their social media use.
With the second group of participants 824 adult usersthe authors investigated the potential negative effects of describing frequent use of Instagram as addiction.
The team found that prompting participants to… Frame your social media use as an addiction was associated with Feel less in control of your Instagram use And with greater guilt towards themselves and the platform for their excessive consumption.
The fact that the media and other institutions categorize frequent use of networks as addictive could contribute to Instagram users overestimating the degree of their addiction to the platform and also It can negatively affect your perception of consumption What they do from social networks.
Therefore, the authors argue that More selective use of the term “addiction” By policy makers and the media regarding social media consumption can reduce this effect.
With information from EFE.