"I Want to Stop, but My Fingers Won't" - Three Psychological Mechanisms That Keep Us Trapped in Endless Scrolling

At night, I intended to look at my smartphone for just a bit. I checked notifications, played a short video, and scrolled down the timeline a few times. Before I knew it, 30 minutes or even an hour had passed. I don't remember everything I saw. Rather, I am left with a vague sense of what I watched and a feeling of fatigue. Yet, the next day, I find myself repeating the same behavior.

This feeling of "wanting to stop but unable to" has become familiar to many people. Smartphones and social media are gateways to work, learning, communication, entertainment, shopping, and news gathering, making it difficult to separate them from modern life. Therefore, the issue is not simply "to use the internet or not." The problem arises when usage intensifies to the point where it harms one's life, mental health, relationships, sleep, and work quality, yet remains difficult to control.

A study introduced by Phys.org in May 2026 provides some clarity on this issue. Professor Matthias Brand and his research team at the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany identified three psychological pathways that explain "problematic internet use." The focus is not on a vague dependence on the internet itself but on specific online behaviors—such as excessive gaming, social media use, online shopping, and pornography viewing—that disrupt daily life.

The research team focused on the interplay of emotions, habits, and self-control that make it difficult to stop these behaviors. The three pathways outlined in the paper are expressed in very intuitive terms.

The first is "Feels better." This pathway suggests that using the internet makes one feel better or alleviates unpleasant feelings. Boredom, anxiety, loneliness, fatigue, stress—when faced with these emotions, smartphones become the easiest escape. Open social media, and there are reactions. Play a video, and you don't have to think. Browse a shopping site, and your mood shifts while choosing something. What starts as a small distraction can, over time, strengthen the association of "turn to the internet when things get tough."

The second is "Must do." This pathway involves impulses and habits that arise from within. Even without anything specific to see, one unconsciously opens an app. Before returning to work, they check notifications one more time. In those spare moments—on the toilet, on the train, before bed, right after waking up—hands reach for the smartphone. Here, ingrained habits move faster than the user's clear intentions.

The third is "Can’t stop." This pathway weakens the ability to stop once started. Endless scrolling and continuous playback of short videos are designed to exploit this weakness. There is no natural end. After viewing one post, the next immediately appears. Before a video ends, the next stimulus is already waiting. Users need to decide "this is the end," but the more tired, lonely, or stressed they are, the harder that decision becomes.

In this study, a large-scale experiment involving 819 participants was conducted, including clinical interviews, questionnaires, and computer-based cognitive tasks. Participants responded to internet-related stimuli and performed tasks that required inhibiting specific responses, measuring impulse control and reactivity to internet-related stimuli. Additionally, a follow-up survey was conducted six months later for some participants.

Importantly, the three pathways do not function independently but influence each other. For example, someone who finds relief in checking social media is more likely to open apps during stressful times. Frequent opening leads to habit formation. Once habitual, stronger self-control is required to stop. However, the more tired one is, the weaker self-control becomes. As a result, "wanting to feel better," "can't help but do it," and "can't stop" form a loop, extending usage time.

This perspective differs from the notion of dismissing excessive internet use as merely "personal laziness." Of course, individual choices and lifestyle habits are relevant. However, as the problem progresses, multiple factors such as emotional regulation, reward, impulse, habit, and cognitive control intertwine. Therefore, simply deciding "not to look at the smartphone with determination" may not always work.

Looking at reactions on social media, the explanation of this study resonates with many users' experiences. While there is not a large-scale reaction to this specific Phys.org article, discussions about endless scrolling, short videos, and decreased concentration frequently occur on platforms like Reddit and X.

Particularly notable is the reaction of "I wasn't the only one." In Reddit's digital well-being communities, posts expressing empathy gather attention, such as those from users who used to focus on books or long videos but now check their smartphones every few minutes. Posters mention that they opened their PC to work, only to find themselves checking their smartphone, watching videos one after another, and losing 1-2 hours without realizing it. This closely resembles the combination of "Must do" and "Can’t stop."

Additionally, many comments suggest that "friction works better than willpower." Placing the smartphone in another room, turning off notifications, distancing apps from the home screen, not charging in the bedroom, and setting the screen to grayscale are examples of strategies. These are not mere mental exercises but environmental designs to break the automation of behavior. By creating a pause before opening an app, unconscious actions are turned back into conscious choices. This can be seen as a practical response to the "stopping power" issue highlighted in the research.

On the other hand, there are reactions stating that "it's not just TikTok that's bad." In another Reddit thread about short videos, there was irony directed at people criticizing TikTok while spending long hours watching YouTube Shorts or Instagram Reels. This suggests that the issue is not with specific brand names but with the format itself, where short stimuli flow continuously, encouraging the anticipation of the next reward. Even text-based social media can create similar loops if the feed continues endlessly, presenting posts of anger, laughter, or surprise one after another.

However, there are also cautious voices on social media. Some point out that scientific article headlines tend to use strong expressions like "rotting the brain," and warn against confusing correlation with causation. This is important. Even if a relationship between internet use and decreased concentration, deteriorating mental health, and impulsivity is shown, not all causes can be attributed to the internet. People who are already stressed, lonely, or anxious may be increasing their internet use as a coping mechanism. The value of this study lies in its attempt to model how different psychological pathways interact to exacerbate symptoms, rather than a simplistic good-versus-bad argument.

So, what should we do?

First, we need to view our internet use not just in terms of "time" but also "purpose." One hour of research for work and one hour of watching short videos to distract from sleepless anxiety are not the same, even though they are both one hour. The issue is not just the length but whether life progresses after use or if fatigue and self-loathing increase.

Second, it's important to recognize the "entry point of emotions." Before opening social media, take a moment to see what you're feeling. Are you bored, lonely, wanting to escape work, or sleepy? If internet use is a quick fix for emotions, it's necessary to prepare alternative solutions. Walking, bathing, taking a short nap, writing in a paper diary, contacting someone, tidying up the room. The key is not the intensity of pleasure but having circuits to adjust your mood outside the internet.

Third, instead of blaming habits, redesign them. Humans are weak to temptation. Therefore, it's more realistic to reduce the number of times you encounter temptation than to try to win against it every time. Turn off notifications. Delete apps. Use only the browser version. Don't bring your smartphone into the bedroom. Place it in another room while working. These small frictions act as cushions to stop the unconscious "Must do."

Fourth, decide in advance when to stop. Endless scrolling has no endpoint. Therefore, users need to create an artificial endpoint. "Close after watching three videos," "Stop when the timer rings," "Don't watch after 30 minutes before bed," "Don't touch during meals." The more specific the end condition rather than vague resolutions, the easier it is to change behavior.

The significance of this study also lies in not confining the discussion of internet use to just "regulating youth's social media." As the article points out, adults also spend long hours online every day. While protecting children and youth is important, it lacks persuasiveness to demand self-control from children alone without addressing problematic use by adults. Parents, teachers, companies, media, platforms, and users themselves are all in the same environment.

Moreover, in terms of treatment and prevention, the organization of the three pathways is useful. If the main issue for someone is "using to feel better," then emotional regulation and stress management are key. If the issue is "habitual impulse," then environmental design and behavioral therapy interventions are needed. For someone else, cognitive training and specific usage restrictions may be effective against weakened "stopping power." In other words, it's more practical to determine which pathway is strong rather than giving everyone the same advice to "reduce smartphone use."

The danger of endless scrolling lies not in a powerful blow but in gentle repetition. A single video, one post, one notification may not seem significant. However, when accumulated daily, they gradually affect tolerance to boredom, concentration, sleep, mood, and relationships. Moreover, the person doesn't feel like they're doing anything significant. They were just "looking a little."

Therefore, the solution is not an extreme conclusion like cutting off the internet. The solution is to regain control over internet use. Pause before opening. Decide on an endpoint. Have multiple emotional escape routes. Counter app design with the design of your own life.

The reason you can't stop scrolling isn't simply because your willpower is weak. It's the desire to change your mood, habits solidified by repetition, and the control power of a tired brain. These three intertwine on the screen. Therefore, countermeasures also need to be considered from three directions: willpower, emotions, environment, and habits.

Smartphones are convenient tools and windows to the world. However, if that window has become a corridor with no exit, it's okay to pause. Even just asking yourself before looking at the next post is fine.

"Is this something I really want to see, or am I just unable to stop?"

Source URL

Phys.org article. Refer to the overview of the study, the three pathways "Feels better," "Must do," "Can’t stop," the survey of 819 people, and the six-month follow-up.
https://phys.org/news/2026-05-endless-scrolling-harder-drivers-problematic.html

Comprehensive Psychiatry published paper. Information on the paper "Affective and cognitive drivers explain current and future symptoms of problematic usage of the internet" by Brand et al.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0010440X26000362

University of Duisburg-Essen FOR2974 publication list. Used to check bibliographic information of the relevant paper, DOI, and related research.
https://www.uni-due.de/for2974/publikationen.php

Reddit r/nosurf post. Refer to user reactions and countermeasures such as decreased concentration due to scrolling, placing smartphones in another room, turning off notifications, and increasing friction.
https://www.reddit.com/r/nosurf/comments/1rmo6o4/is_anyone_else_losing_their_ability_to_focus/

Reddit r/technology discussion on short videos and social media use. Refer to general user reactions and cautious opinions on scientific reporting regarding TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, Reddit, etc.
https://www.reddit.com/r/technology/comments/1p42hlk/new_study_reveals_tiktok_instagram_content/