By Raima Saha, Co-Managing Editor
Entertainment, such as movies, video games and social media, has become an instantaneous, almost necessary part of our everyday lives. Think about it: How many times do you find yourself scrolling through Instagram, sending Snapchat pictures, watching TikTok videos or just falling into Internet rabbit holes? If you’re like me, it’s way too many. We justify it as a little break from our strenuous, daily lives — but how much is too much?
According to Mayo Clinic, addiction is a person’s inability to control use of a substance or behavior, despite its negative consequences. When defined this way, it’s easy to see how problematic entertainment consumption can be, especially when left unchecked. The problem is that it’s often dismissed as not being a real issue due to lack of awareness —something that needs to change to properly address it.
Entertainment addiction can be dangerous, especially considering that constant entertainment consumption wastes time. What begins as seemingly harmless, mindless scrolling can turn into chronic procrastination. This lessened productivity can seep into other aspects of life and can leave one less fulfilled and motivated as a person.
Extreme entertainment consumption promotes instant gratification as the short-term solution to long-term problems rather than discipline. A study published by the International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction found that there was a close relationship between avoidant and impulsive problem-solving styles and internet usage amongst 371 university students aged 17-36. Using entertainment as an escape from solving problems in life rather than addressing them directly encourages problematic character traits that can harm rather than help.
Most evidently, excessive entertainment usage takes away everyday moments and increases disconnection to the real world. A study by professors at the International College of National Institute of Development Administration in Bangkok, Thailand found that people plagued with social media addiction tended to have lower levels of mindfulness and increased emotional exhaustion. What seems to be a quick dopamine release ends up making you more unhappy, a strange paradox that makes you crave more of that unfulfilling “drug.”
Many may argue that entertainment is harmless since it’s merely a pleasurable act to take a break or unwind. That is true. Entertainment is harmless … until it isn’t. Too much of anything isn’t good. The lack of moderation of screen use is what makes entertainment addiction harmful. This can result in numerous mental health issues such as anxiety, depression and disrupted sleep, showing that entertainment is not fun and games all the time.
Entertainment addiction is a serious issue that we need to address, and it all stems from the same place as most other addictions: the need to escape reality. Any addiction takes time and effort to break, more so with entertainment addiction because of the prevalence of screens in our daily lives, but escaping the chains of these unhealthy coping habits can only happen if we take it seriously and acknowledge it as a real problem.
Raima Saha can be reached at [email protected].
