Noting that social media use has now become an indispensable part of life in Türkiye, Prof. Gül Esra Atalay said: “Moreover, this is not a habit exclusive to young people. Millions of people from every age group spend a significant part of their day staring at digital screens. The proportion of social media users has reached nearly 70 percent of the population. The daily average time spent on social media is close to 3 hours, while internet usage exceeds 7 hours,and both figures are above the world average.”
Expressing that people often feel as if a message has arrived even when it hasn’t, Prof. Atalay added: “Every morning, as soon as we open our eyes, our fingers, as if on autopilot, reach for the phone before washing our face, before saying good morning to our loved ones. Do I have a notification? Has a message arrived? Did I get any ‘likes’? We think we’ll just take a quick look and leave, but we don’t.”
Prof. Gül Esra Atalay, Dean of the Faculty of Communication at Üsküdar University, evaluated one of the most common problems of modern society: Digital Fatigue.
Social media users have reached nearly 70% of the population
Emphasizing once again that social media use has become an inseparable part of life in Türkiye, Prof. Atalay stated: “Moreover, this is not a habit limited to young people. Millions of people across all age groups spend a serious portion of their day in front of digital screens. The proportion of social media users has reached nearly 70 percent of the population. The average daily social media use is nearly 3 hours, while internet use exceeds 7 hours, and both are above the global average.”
We use the internet and social media intensively
Highlighting the intensity of internet and social media use, Prof. Atalay said: “Moreover, we are not only consuming content but are also constantly engaged in producing, sharing, and establishing social connections. Even in our closest relationships, the influence of social media grows by the day. We monitor our family members through social media, we chat with friends or compete with rivals on social media. For work, we use social media. For love, we use social media. To be seen, we use social media. To hid, we use social media. For entertainment and even for learning, we are once again on social media.”
Our attention is constantly interrupted by notifications
Drawing attention to one of the invisible burdens of the digital world, “digital fatigue,” Prof. Atalay continued: “Our attention is constantly disrupted by incoming notifications; social media and mobile messaging applications won’t let us go, and with every scroll we consume refreshed content, slowly exhausting ourselves without realizing it. This is not only a mental fatigue, and it also wears us down emotionally, making us unable to perceive what is happening around us. In psychological terminology, this condition is referred to as ‘Digital Burnout.’ The main symptoms of digital burnout are listed as apathy, indifference, or mental exhaustion. In the digital age, we are exposed to excessive amounts of information. Although terms like ‘information society’ or ‘information age’ are often used to glorify this reality, the mind’s constant exposure to more information than it can process does not, contrary to popular belief, have positive effects.”
Overload of information makes us sick
Prof. Atalay stated: “The stress caused by trying to digest the overload of information can make us ill by disrupting our sleep, sabotaging our concentration, and weakening our immune system. As a result, we turn into societies suffering from Information Fatigue Syndrome. To understand how this condition emerges, we need to recall the Cognitive Load Theory. The theory explains that when we are confronted with too much information, we start to struggle and face problems because our working memory does not have the capacity to process it. Information overload leads to fatigue and creates a desire to escape from one’s current situation.”
Spending hours in front of screens leads to burnout
Expressing that people often feel as if a message has arrived even when it hasn’t, Prof. Atalay continued: “We are constantly pricking up our ears as if a sound is coming from the phone. Continuous and excessive stimulation through digital technologies, spending hours in front of screens, pushes us toward burnout. This problem has reached a dimension that not only concerns the individual but also their family and social circle, disrupting human relationships. Every morning, as soon as we open our eye, our fingers, as if on autopilot, reach for the phone before washing our face, before saying good morning to our loved ones. Do I have a notification? Has a message arrived? Did I get any ‘likes’? We think we’ll just take a quick look and leave, but it doesn’t work that way.”
Causing problems among families and couples
Highlighting the issue of phubbing, which is the act of ignoring people physically present in favor of looking at one’s smartphone, Prof. Atalay noted that this behavior causes problems within families, friendships, and between couples. She added: “Every time we turn our eyes to the screen, we become a little more detached from our social relationships, our environment, and even ourselves. Family conversations are replaced by silence; because even if we are in the same room, even gathered around the same table, everyone is roaming in their own digital universe. Digital fatigue deepens this detachment, and the more we disconnect, the more tired and burnt out we become. There is also the physical aspect. The inactivity driven by digital technologies, poor posture, and lack of sleep seriously threaten our health.”
Social media fatigue is inevitable
Emphasizing that this situation is not merely due to a lack of individual willpower, Prof. Atalay explained the role of algorithms: “The fact that social media platforms consume so much of our time cannot be explained solely by user preferences and habits. At the core of all of them are algorithms designed to keep users on the platform as long as possible. These algorithms observe and process all our digital behaviors and get to know us better each day. Thus, they start to predict what content we won’t be able to take our eyes off. Ultimately, social media fatigue becomes inevitable. Ironically, research shows that social media fatigue is beginning to cause users to feel overwhelmed by their activities and even withdraw from usage over time. In other words, social media platforms need to reconsider their algorithm policies not only for the well-being of society but also for their own sustainability.”
The rise of digital minimalism
As user sensitivity to this issue increases, Prof. Gül Esra Atalay noted that the digital minimalism movement is also becoming more widespread, and she outlined the steps for adopting digital minimalism:
- Deleting unused applications from smartphones, tablets, and computers,
- Asking the question “What am I going to use this for?” every time we pick up the phone, in order to reduce unnecessary scrolling,
- Turning off notifications for social media and entertainment applications,
- Setting limits on screen time,
- Allocating specific times during the day or one full day a week to stay away from social media,
- Replacing digital screens with activities such as reading books, meeting friends, or going for walks.
- “All these may not seem easy at first, but it is necessary to start somewhere.”
Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)