How the use of Tik Tok and Instagram may influence your psychological well-being

Among the swiftest developing social media sites in the U.S. are Instagram and TikTok. S. Entertainment and connection to a worldwide community are just a finger swipe away. A person's mental well-being in relation to their specific usage of Instagram and TikTok has not been extensively researched despite the platforms' growing popularity. Although, investigating this relationship further is important.

Acknowledging Meredith E. David, Ph.D.'s expertise, she is known as a smartphone researcher at Baylor University. , Associate Professor of Marketing, and James A. Roberts, Ph.D. The Ben H. Williams Professor of Marketing in the Hanker School of Business has investigated how the happiness experienced by individuals while using Instagram and TikTok, also known as flow states, is related to psychological well-being.

Published in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking the research by David and Roberts, named 'Flow States on Instagram and TikTok and How They Impact Psychological Well-Being'.

The study sampled a group consisting of 420 U.S adults that were then surveyed. Studying how the flow states differ while they are using Instagram and TikTok and how they affect their well-being. The flow state occurs when individuals become absorbed in an activity and prioritize it over other things, even if it has unfavorable outcomes.

These are the 5 flow dimensions:

Focused Attention (immersion while using social media)

Enjoyment (fun experienced while using social media)

Curiosity (the desire to keep up with what's happening on a social media site)

Telepresence (immersion in a world created by the social media experience

Time Distortion (losing a sense of time while on social media)

The research concluded that telepresence serves as a key driver behind harmful online behavior and addiction on various social media platforms, and both Instagram and TikTok users showed increased levels of addiction along with mind wandering difficulties following their use of telepresence. The findings from this research demonstrate that approximately one fourth (24%) of TikTok and slightly over one fourth (28%) of Instagram users can be categorized as addicted based on the diagnostic tools used.

If overused when trying to escape daily concerns social media platforms can be ineffective as a coping mechanism according to David.

Social media experience often replaces the necessary and important close personal relations required for our psychological-wellbeing as mentioned by David.

Differences between Instagram and TikTok users

While most people believe that flow experiences are the same on all social media platforms, researchers have discovered that this belief does not apply to Instagram and TikTok, as users on TikTok experience more time distortion and flow as compared to those on Instagram. While only 38% of Instagram's user base was found to experience high degrees of telepresence in contrast to TikTok where it was as much as 53%, according to research, different compositions of flow likely lead to distinct experiences of individuals regarding the state of being 'in the zone' on various social media platforms.

One example of a social media app that prioritizes a personal touch is Instagram, sharing photos is more personal as they are shared among a small group of close-knit friends while TikTok is an impersonal platform where people share videos with anyone who can appreciate them.

The numerous entertaining short videos on TikTok keep users engaged, and it's easy to fall into the trap of constantly watching more, so an increase in time distortion during the state of flow can be caused by this type of behavior. Tiktokers reported losing sense of time while scrolling through videos on the app, which resulted in spending much more time than they had planned. They acknowledged suffering some adverse effects as a result of their video-streaming habit, yet still found themselves drawn into it and unable to stop.

Overcoming negative impacts

Lessening your app usage may help mitigate any negative consequences of time distortion and telepresence: Roberts recommends.

The majority of social media applications provide screen-time management features which can be used.

Picking out an overseer such as a spouse or accountability partner who can help manage and restrict the duration for which an individual employs social media.

A pre-established limit on how long they use apps can contribute towards improving one's self-restraint during subsequent social media sessions.

Social media can have positive or negative impacts that depend on how users utilize it.

David pointed out that too much dependency on social media as a substitute for true connections and communications could have negative impacts on our health, but by using social media purposefully and limiting consumption one can learn something new at the same time satisfying their curiosity while benefiting from establishing solid connections with others.

ore information: James A. Roberts et al, Instagram and TikTok Flow States and Their Association with Psychological Well-Being, Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking (2023). DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2022.0117