Article URL: https://blog.incogni.com/digital-fatigue-and-burnout/ Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48904855 Points: 39 # Comments: 28

People are quietly withdrawing from active participation in social media. While they may not be deleting accounts en masse, many are: The internet and the connectivity it facilitates have shifted from being focused on interpersonal communication to being sources of news, spaces for political discussions, and sources of algorithmically guided entertainment. Incogni’s researchers surveyed a representative sample of 1,000 adults to investigate people’s attitudes surrounding social media and online engagement more broadly, the extent to which they’re limiting or eliminating social media usage, their reasons for this, and what they experienced after doing so. More than half (51%) of participants indicated that maintaining an online presence feels like work. The pressure is strongest among younger users, with 60% of Gen Z agreeing, compared to 38% of Baby Boomers. The latter is still a high number for a generation known to have lower rates of digital participation. The finding suggests that online participation is increasingly experienced not simply as entertainment or connection, but as another responsibility to manage: from responding to messages and following conversations to deciding what to post and how it may be received. The maintenance of an online presence also means staying connected. The survey asked respondents whether not checking their messages provoked any notable emotions. The findings suggest that stepping away from messaging platforms does not produce one clear emotional response. Peacefulness was the most commonly reported feeling among respondents who had gone an extended period without checking their messages, cited by 27% of survey participants. Anxiety followed at 22%, while 21% reported feeling relaxed. They are followed by Millennials, although at notably lower rates (26% and 21%), with Gen X and Baby Boomer respondents experiencing both negative and positive emotions less frequently, suggesting that digital communication may play a lesser role in their lives.