Doomscrolling evokes existential anxiety and fosters pessimism about human nature? Evidence from Iran and the United States
Author: Shabahang, Reza; Hwang, Hyeyeon; Thomas, Emma F.; Aruguete, Mara S.; McCutcheon, Lynn E.; Orosz, Gabor; Hossein Khanzadeh, Abbas Ali; Mokhtari Chirani, Benyamin; Zsila, Agnes Description: The media’s adherence to “if it bleeds, it leads” has resulted in global dominance of negative news (e.g., stories of corruption, fraud, shootings, terrorism, and war). The appetite for negative news is fueled by negativity bias, which compels people to prioritize negative over positive stories. This cross-cultural study, inspired by media effect theories such as Cultivation Theory, explored the links between problematic consumption of…
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