By: Ella Allen
Since 2017, TikTok has been delivering short, fast-paced videos to users.
Many teens, including myself, have suffered from endless “doomscrolling” and a dying attention span.
I grew up glued to books, constantly locking myself in my room to read.
Now, I find that I can’t get through 15 pages of my required summer reading without picking up my phone.
Our generation’s dopamine hits used to be fueled by Barbie dolls and soft-serve ice cream, but now we hypnotize ourselves with short, meaningless videos.
It seems like entertainment will only get more mindless from here, giving way for everyday tasks to become difficult.
Endless videos curated by the app’s complex algorithm wait under each one you watch, which makes it all the more difficult to stop scrolling.
What is the science that makes TikTok so addictive, and what does that mean for the future of Gen Z’s ambitions and mental health?
The first thing that comes to mind is a term I learned in my AP psychology class. Retroactive interference: A phenomenon in memory where new information impairs recollection of old information.
I often feel my mind dulling as I scroll, and that each video blends with the last until it comes to the point where I’m not even confident that I could explain to someone what I watched 15 seconds ago.
Our memories are delicate and complex, and it’s not right for us to be staring into the same screen, letting minutes turn to hours.
I think that this is dangerous in the long term, as it significantly hinders my productivity and diminishes my passions. We find ourselves so captivated by apps like TikTok that we lose sight of what’s important and sell ourselves short on the adolescence that we deserve.
I’ve had conversations with friends about how difficult it is for us to finish tasks, live in the moment, or even read for enjoyment because of the way that TikTok eats away at our attention span.
Being unique is what drives society to function, and that’s exactly what is being dulled down in our generation with the rise of fast-paced and addictive media.
Ella Allen is a student at Ursuline Academy and a summer intern at Texas Metro News.
