Doomscrolling: Why Can’t We Stop?

When I open my phone in the morning, I make a promise I will likely break. I will only check the news once daily. As a faculty member at three universities and colleges, I must stay updated with the world given my subject matter—psychology and media. It’s been worse lately. I find one article, and then it leads to the next, similar to or even different from the initially conceived path.

We’ve all been there—one minute, you’re checking the news for an update, and the next, you’re waist-deep in a vortex of disaster headlines, apocalyptic climate warnings, and political strife. This compulsive need to scroll through bad news or information, known as doomscrolling, has recently become an all-too-common habit. And while staying informed is important, constantly feeding our brains a steady diet of negativity isn’t doing us any favors.

Psychologists have been studying how this behavior affects our cognitive functions, emotional well-being, and even our ability to focus on the things that matter in our daily lives. The result? Doomscrolling isn’t just a means to pass the time—it’s actively harming our mental health.

Are We Wired to Doomscroll?

The tendency to focus on negative information isn’t new—it’s actually a biological mechanism. Our brains are wired with negativity bias, meaning we naturally pay more attention to bad news than good (Baumeister et al., 2001). In the early evolution of humans, this bias helped us avoid life-threatening hazards. Today, instead of spotting a hungry predator in the wild, this situation lights up the necessary parts of our brain to decide—fight or flight. Whether we think we will be eaten by a lion or we are watching the latest global crisis, our brain makes the same stress response—we’re on high alert regardless. And this goes for all life’s major stresses, not just new-based ones.

During uncertain times (we have been there: pandemics, economic downturns, political chaos), this instinct goes into overdrive. Studies from the COVID-19 era show that people who engaged in excessive doomscrolling reported higher levels of anxiety and depression (Sharma et al., 2022; Pas, 2023). Instead of making us feel prepared and informed, consuming bad news nonstop actually makes us feel more helpless—contributing to poor mental health.

You're not wrong if you think teens and young adults are especially bad at putting their phones down. Their prefrontal cortex—the part of the brain responsible for impulse control—is still developing (Davey et al., 2008), which makes it even harder for them to break the cycle of doomscrolling, which, unsurprisingly, is linked to increased rates of stress and mental health issues (Shabahang et al., 2023).

How Doomscrolling Messes With Your Brain

Beyond the obvious stress and anxiety, doomscrolling takes a real toll on how we think.

• It wreaks havoc on your attention span. The brain starts craving constant stimulation, making it harder to focus on tasks that aren’t delivering the same emotional hit (Ophir et al., 2009). No wonder reading a book feels harder than scrolling social media.
• It overloads your brain. Constant exposure to distressing content fills up your working memory, leaving little room for productive thinking or problem-solving (Sweller, 1988). Ever felt mentally exhausted after spending too much time scrolling? That’s why.
• It warps your reality. Studies show that people who consume a high volume of negative news tend to overestimate real-world/real-time/proximity dangers (Thompson et al., 2019; Rodrigues, 2023). This is due to the constant exposure, thinking it is a close-by, active threat that will not cease anytime soon. You’re not just absorbing the news but subtly reshaping your perception of reality.

Doomscrolling and Mental Health: A Vicious Cycle

If doomscrolling made us feel more informed and in control, that would be one thing. But research suggests it actually has the opposite effect. Instead of alleviating stress, it keeps us stuck in a loop of rumination and anxiety, reinforcing our fears and leaving us feeling worse (Canetti et al., 2017; Sharma et al., 2022).

For people who already struggle with anxiety or depression, doomscrolling can become a maladaptive coping mechanism—a way to seek control over uncontrollable situations. Unfortunately, instead of helping, it feeds the stress cycle (Pas, 2023).

How to Break Free From the Doomscrolling Trap

So, what’s one to do? Altogether, avoiding all bad news isn’t the answer. We do need to keep a pulse on things to some degree. Thus, developing healthier digital habits can help:

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• Set time limits. Instead of mindlessly scrolling, schedule a specific time to check the news (and stick to it!). It will take time to get into a regular habit, so do your best to start small managing limits—“I will not scroll waiting in line” or “I will not scroll for the next 90 minutes.”
• Curate your feed. Follow reputable sources and mute accounts that thrive on outrage and fear or are overtly opinion-based.
• Read, don’t skim. Reading full articles instead of headlines can help you process information less reactionarily. Most of us are gone by the second paragraph. Make it a mental practice to read through each piece and absorb the information.
• Balance your content. For every negative story, seek something uplifting or informative to balance the scales. Reach out to a friend, pick up a book, or take a short walk.
• Replace scrolling with action. If a news story upsets you, look for real-world ways to contribute instead of endlessly consuming bad news. Donate, discuss the topic with a trusted friend, volunteer for a cause, or contact your local representatives.

The key takeaway? Doomscrolling doesn’t help us better navigate the world. By being intentional about our digital consumption, we can reclaim our focus, mental health, and peace of mind. OK, it’s time to go for a walk (and do my best not to scroll while en route).