Can Watching Online Videos Be Addictive? A Qualitative Exploration of Online Video Watching among Chinese Young Adults
Abstract
:1. Introduction
1.1. Generalized Versus Specific Problematic Internet Use
1.2. Problematic Online Video Watching Behaviors
1.3. The Present Study
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Participants
2.2. Measures
2.3. Procedure
2.4. Ethics
2.5. Data Analysis
3. Results
“I think ‘Gui Chu’ is a repetition of an action or a short video clip, and if you watch the video several times, you may think this video is really funny”.(Participant 8, female, 20 years)
“My roommate often watches ‘Tu Wei’ videos for a long time, but these videos are not attractive to me. I think the background music of these videos is annoying and sometimes brain washing [catchy], and the content is also vulgar and even unnatural”.(Participant 5, female, 22 years)
“I must watch Danmu while watching videos. I think Danmu is extraordinarily interesting. It is less funny when you watch video without Danmu”.(Participant 16, female, 22 years)
“There is no soul without comment. Sometimes it is the comments rather than the content itself that makes a video interesting”.(Participant 18, female, 23 years)
“I usually turn off Danmu while watching video unless I want to know what the others are thinking…I get rid of Danmu because it affects my watching experience”.(Participant 11, female, 21 years)
“I prefer short videos to regular videos. Short videos are often less than one minute, sometime about ten seconds, which meets my needs of watching videos in small time windows. And short videos are often more entertaining than other types of videos”.(Participant 12, female, 21 years)
“I think the rise of short video is inevitable. Nowadays, the pace of society is getting faster and faster. People are more willing to spend fragmented time on short videos. For example, I’m following an online news channel on Bilibili. Their videos often last for only several minutes, which saves my time a lot”.(Participant 20, male, 21)
“I am aware that the recommendations from the video platforms are based on algorithms. For example, when I watched several mukbang videos, the platform recommended more mukbang videos to me until I intentionally changed to another video type”.(Participant 2, male, 22 years)
“If I haven’t used this app today, it may then push some notifications to me that attracts me to use it. And the apps often recommend something similar to what I searched or said before. Now many apps have these functions”.(Participant 17, female, 22)
“After I finished a video clip, the platform will play the next video automatically, and then I may find that video is also interesting and continue to watch videos”.(Participant 16, female, 22 years)
“I watch online videos mainly because of my favorite female pop group”.(Participant 13, male, 23 years)
“I usually watch mukbang when doing exercise. When watching the others eating on camera, I feel as if I am also eating the delicious food. That makes me psychologically gratified and motivates me to watch more mukbang videos”.(Participant 10, female, 20 years)
“When I was a child, I always watched cartoons after dinner every day at around 5 pm. Now I watch online videos instead. I usually check if some of my following uploaders have updated their channels at 7 or 8 pm. It is more like a habit, and I don’t think it is harmful to my life”.(Participant 20, male, 21 years)
“I think watching mukbang videos on Bilibili has become a habit, which meets my needs while exercising”.(Participant 10, female, 20 years)
“Watching live stream, usually chatting with fans, by my idol has become a daily activity for me. Sometimes I just put my phone down and listen to it while doing the other things”.(Participant 13, male, 23 years)
“I have a habit of watching mukbang, but I am not addicted to it. I usually watch four or five mukbang videos each day, and it won’t take more than half an hour”.(Participant 10, female, 20 years)
“Some of my friends may talk about a popular video or a TV show. If I haven’t watched them yet, I can’t understand their topics or join them. That made me frustrated”.(Participant 1, male, 22)
“The memes are the ways of communication with the others. Many people around you are talking about the memes. If you know the memes, you will know what they are talking about. It is a necessity for social interaction”.(Participant 12, female, 21)
“I frequently check if some of my following uploaders have updated new videos. If not, I may feel disappointed and lost”.(Participant 2, male, 22 years)
“Some video uploaders or live stream hosts have become my virtual friends. Just like my old friends, I will check their lives when I think of them”.(Participant 12, female, 21)
“I think watching live stream is interactive and immersive. It feels like you are communicating with the live stream host closely, and the host is talking to you. Although I know it is not real, I get much gratification. I often watch live stream at midnight”.(Participant 12, female, 21 years)
“Some video platforms have their own ‘Danmu culture’. Thousands of people chat on Danmu. It makes you feel like that you are watching the recorded video together with a lot of people simultaneously. Danmu definitely makes the video more enjoyable”.(Participant 2, male, 22 years)
“One of my roommates often plays videos too loudly, which makes me uncomfortable and even disgusted”.(Participant 3, female, 22)
“Once I commented on a video, a stranger refuted me with ten more comments…There must be something wrong with him!”.(Participant 10, female, 20 years)
“I usually do gym exercise in the evening. It is always a little bit boring and I’m often hungry so I watch mukbang videos. Watching the others eating makes me feel like I have taken their food too, which provides me with reassurance and satisfaction”.(Participant 10, female, 20 years)
“Watching online videos makes me procrastinate more. Sometimes I plan to finish my tasks after watching the video, but I always put it off to the next day. I may escape from my tasks by watching videos”.(Participant 2, male, 22 years)
“Watching online videos is an effective way to positively change my mood especially when encountering difficulties or disappointments”.(Participant 13, male, 23)
“Many uploaders share daily lives with their pets. My cat is not with me and I always miss it. Watching these videos makes me feel reassured and compensated”.(Participant 12, female, 21 years)
“If the online video is not played, the task at hand might be paused or stopped, [The video] gives me a feeling of being accompanied by others”.(Participant 9, female, 20 years)
“When my supported gaming team lost, I felt disappointed and frustrated in the following two or three days. That’s the negative emotional impact of the videos”.(Participant 4, male, 22 years)
“I usually watch online videos when I’m bored. But after watching for a while, I may feel even more bored and empty”.(Participant 7, female, 24 years)
“One of my friends is addicted to online pornography. She watches porn almost every day, sometimes even excessively. Then she always feels exhausted and easily distracted because of watching too much porn”.(Participant 5, female, 22 years)
“Sometimes I stay up late to watch online series, I just can’t stop it. Because the series often have suspense at the end of one episode, it motivates me to watch the following episode continuously. That leads to poorer sleep quality and makes me tired all day”.(Participant 4, male, 22)
“You can always receive push [notifications] and you enjoy watching the recommended videos. The platform knows your interests and favorites”.(Participant 1, male, 22 years)
“The platform’s push [notifications] related video comes to you automatically and then you would find this video also interesting. I used to watch short videos all day until I ran out my phone’s power. That was horrible! I uninstalled that short video app”.(Participant 16, female, 22 years)
“With my phone in hand, I feel too easy for me to scroll down to the next video. It won’t be that easy when I rotate my phone 90 degrees and watch videos horizontally”.(Participant 16, female, 22 years)
“Sometimes I keep scrolling on the video app for a whole afternoon, It’s horrible. Before an important examination, I was anxious but still watched short videos for a long time. I felt serious regret, but I just could not stop watching videos. That also raised some conflicts, such as quarreling with my parents”.(Participant 7, female, 24 years)
“Watching videos excessively has bad effects on my vision, and sometimes my neck hurts”.(Participant 7, female, 24)
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Yang, Z.; Griffiths, M.D.; Yan, Z.; Xu, W. Can Watching Online Videos Be Addictive? A Qualitative Exploration of Online Video Watching among Chinese Young Adults. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 7247. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18147247
Yang Z, Griffiths MD, Yan Z, Xu W. Can Watching Online Videos Be Addictive? A Qualitative Exploration of Online Video Watching among Chinese Young Adults. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(14):7247. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18147247
Chicago/Turabian StyleYang, Zeyang, Mark D. Griffiths, Zhihao Yan, and Wenting Xu. 2021. "Can Watching Online Videos Be Addictive? A Qualitative Exploration of Online Video Watching among Chinese Young Adults" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 14: 7247. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18147247
APA StyleYang, Z., Griffiths, M. D., Yan, Z., & Xu, W. (2021). Can Watching Online Videos Be Addictive? A Qualitative Exploration of Online Video Watching among Chinese Young Adults. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 18(14), 7247. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18147247