The end of the infinite scroll?

Doomscrolling could itself be doomed if European Union regulators have their way.

The European Commission is taking a historic stand against social media, ordering TikTok to disable infinite scrolling, where the page continues to load content as the user scrolls down, allowing them to keep viewing endless content.

Compulsive behaviour 

In the preliminary findings of an ongoing investigation into the social media app, the commission has declared that TikTok’s compulsive design may put it in breach of the Digital Services Act.

Taking aim at the app’s “addictive” features, it said that “by constantly ‘rewarding’ users with more content, certain design features of TikTok fuel the urge to keep scrolling and shift the brain of users into ‘autopilot mode’”. This “may lead to compulsive behaviour and reduce users’ self-control”.

If the findings are confirmed, TikTok could face a fine of up to 6% of its global annual turnover, which would be more than $1 billion based on its 2023 revenue of $23 billion. It could also be required to “change the basic design of its service” to comply with the law. TikTok “now has the chance to defend itself and its design before the investigation is concluded”, said The Verge.

Ruining your life

Researchers at the University of Sussex found that doomscrolling is bad for us but it’s the activity we spend most time on. “In other breaking news, water is wet and the Pope is Catholic”, said Big Issue.

Social media is “designed to keep our eyes on it – in order to make us look at advertisements”, said Professor Robin Banerjee, who led the research. This means “we’ve got this very, very clear pattern” of us “spending a lot of time doing stuff that doesn’t particularly bring us joy”.

The “infinite scroll” feature is “ruining your life”, said The Carolinian, because of a “phenomenon” known as the “scrolling paradox”. This is when a “user’s brain” expects a “strong dopamine surge when scrolling endlessly through social media”, which compels them to keep their phones in their hand. But they “simultaneously report feeling increasingly stressed and anxious” by their “literal inability to stop scrolling”.

But is infinite scrolling a bad thing for everyone? For the “socially anxious”, it “may be a blessing in disguise”, said Aparna Nancherla in The New York Times, because it’s “no longer considered rude to avert your gaze and stare down mutely at a glowing screen in public”.