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What studies have actually found about short-video feeds. Every record names its source, its study design and its limitations, and keeps the source’s finding apart from our reading of it.

Studies on digital behaviour

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  1. Association between short-form video media use and inattentive, hyperactive-impulsive, and oppositional defiant symptoms in Thai preschool children

    Anuroj, K.; Aroonkamonsri, V.
    BMC Public Health

    This study looked at Thai preschool children aged 3–5 and whether short-form video use was linked with caregiver-rated behaviour symptoms. Children used screens for a mean of 3.0 hours per day, including 1.6 hours of short-form video. Higher short-form video use was associated with more inattentive, hyperactive-impulsive, and oppositional defiant symptoms. Because the study was cross-sectional, it cannot show whether short-form video use caused these symptoms.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2026
    Where
    Thailand
    Topics
    Attention, Digital behaviour, Youth wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  2. Association of Short-Form Video Use With Attention Control and Sleep Quality Among Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

    Mohammed, B. A.; Allampally, S.; Sadanandam, P. et al.
    Cureus

    This cross-sectional study looked at short-form video use among 342 medical students. Students who opened short-form video apps more often had lower attention control, while students who spent longer watching had poorer sleep quality. Because the study was cross-sectional, it shows associations, not causation.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2026
    Topics
    Attention, Digital behaviour, Sleep
    Limitations recorded

  3. Attentional impulsivity, short-form video use and adolescents’ school misbehaviors: mediating role of parental media mediation

    Li, L.; Jia, C. X.
    Humanities and Social Sciences Communications

    This cross-sectional study looked at short-form video use, attentional impulsivity, and school misbehavior in 839 Chinese adolescents. Attentional impulsivity was positively associated with short-form video use, and both were positively related to school misbehavior. Active parental media mediation was reported to mediate the relationship between attentional impulsivity and school misbehavior.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2026
    Where
    China
    Topics
    Attention, Digital behaviour, Education
    Limitations recorded

  4. Attention fragmentation and emotional distress: a mixed-methods study of social media use among Indian adults aged 18-45 years

    Bayaskar, S.; Sharma, D.
    BMC Psychology, 14, 1080

    This survey of 582 Indian adults found that people who spent more time on social media were more likely to have scattered, broken attention. People with scattered attention also reported more anxiety and low mood. Many described jumping between Reels and WhatsApp as leaving their mind cluttered. The study shows a link, not that social media causes these problems.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2026
    Where
    India
    Topics
    Attention, Digital behaviour, Mental wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  5. Impact of Short-Form Videos on Screentime and Sleep: Evidence from TikTok

    Agarwal, S.; Ananthakrishnan, U. M.
    Management Science (INFORMS)

    Researchers looked at phone records of about 7,000 people in the United States before and after they started using TikTok. Heavy users spent more total time on their phones afterwards, much of it late at night, and went to bed later and slept somewhat less. People who used TikTok lightly showed no change.

    Design
    Other
    Year
    2026
    Where
    United States
    Topics
    Digital behaviour, Sleep
    Limitations recorded

  6. Digital gratification: short video consumption and mental health in rural China

    Zhang, C.; Zhu, B.
    Frontiers in Public Health

    This study used longitudinal data to examine how frequent short video use is linked with mental health among rural residents in China. It reports a short-term improvement in mental health in the first year of exposure, but says this effect fades later. The reported improvements appear to be linked to entertainment and access to information rather than greater social interaction.

    Design
    Longitudinal cohort
    Year
    2025
    Where
    China
    Topics
    Digital behaviour, Mental wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  7. Feeds, feelings, and focus: A systematic review and meta-analysis examining the cognitive and mental health correlates of short-form video use

    Nguyen, L.; Walters, J.; Paul, S. et al.
    Psychological Bulletin, 151(9), 1125–1146

    This study combined the results of 71 earlier studies with nearly 100,000 people. Across them, people who watched more short videos tended to have weaker attention and self-control, and somewhat more stress and anxiety. It found no link with body image or self-esteem. These are links seen across studies; they do not prove that short videos cause the problems.

    Design
    Meta-analysis
    Year
    2025
    Where
    Multiple countries
    Topics
    Attention, Digital behaviour, Mental wellbeing, Youth wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  8. Reels to Remembrance: Attention Partially Mediates the Relationship Between Short-Form Video Addiction and Memory Function Among Youth

    Al-Leimon, O.; Pan, W.; Jaber, A.-R. et al.
    Healthcare (Basel), 13(3), 252

    In a survey of over 1,000 university students in Jordan, half showed moderate to high signs of short-video addiction. Students with higher addiction scores reported more memory problems, partly through weaker attention, and tended to have lower grades. The study cannot tell which came first.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2025
    Where
    Jordan
    Topics
    Attention, Digital behaviour, Education, Youth wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  9. Short‐Form Video Media Use Is Associated With Greater Inattentive Symptoms in Thai School‐Age Children: Insights From a Cross‐Sectional Survey

    Chiencharoenthanakij, R.; Yothamart, K.; Chantathamma, N. et al.
    Brain and Behavior

    This survey in Thailand looked at whether short-form video use was linked with inattentive behaviour in children aged 6-12. Higher short-form video use was associated with higher inattentive behaviours, and this association was stronger in younger children. It did not find significant associations with hyperactive-impulsive or oppositional-defiant behaviours.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2025
    Where
    Thailand
    Topics
    Attention, Digital behaviour, Youth wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  10. A cross-lagged analysis of the relationship between short video overuse behavior and depression among college students

    Zhang, D.; Yang, Y.; Guan, M.
    Frontiers in Psychology, 15, 1345076

    This study surveyed 331 Chinese college students twice, two months apart. Students who overused short videos at the start were more likely to have more signs of depression two months later; depression at the start did not predict later overuse. It is a small study and shows a possible risk, not proof of harm.

    Design
    Longitudinal cohort
    Year
    2024
    Where
    China
    Topics
    Digital behaviour, Mental wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  11. Can't stop scrolling! Adolescents' patterns of TikTok use and digital well-being self-perception

    Virós-Martín, C.; Montaña-Blasco, M.; Jiménez-Morales, M.
    Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, 11, 1444

    In a survey of 737 teenagers in Spain, most felt mostly positive about their time on TikTok. Teenagers who used it for more than two hours a day said they found it harder to set limits for themselves. Longer use was not linked to their emotional strength or their friendships.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2024
    Where
    Spain
    Topics
    Digital behaviour, Youth wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  12. Effect of short video addiction on the sleep quality of college students: chain intermediary effects of physical activity and procrastination behavior

    Zhao, Z.; Kou, Y.
    Frontiers in Psychology

    This study of 337 college students found that higher short video addiction scores were linked with poorer sleep quality. It also found that lower physical activity and higher procrastination were linked with both higher short video addiction scores and poorer sleep quality. The authors report mediation results suggesting physical activity and procrastination may help explain this association.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2024
    Topics
    Digital behaviour, Sleep, Youth wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  13. The relationship between short-form video use and depression among Chinese adolescents: Examining the mediating roles of need gratification and short-form video addiction

    Zhu, C.; Jiang, Y.; Lei, H. et al.
    Heliyon, 10(9), e30346

    In a survey of 1,302 high-school students in China, the amount of time spent watching short videos was only weakly linked to depression. Feeling unable to stop watching was much more strongly linked to it. The study shows links, not causes, and the link could run either way.

    Design
    Cross-sectional
    Year
    2024
    Where
    China
    Topics
    Digital behaviour, Mental wellbeing, Youth wellbeing
    Limitations recorded

  14. Viewing personalized video clips recommended by TikTok activates default mode network and ventral tegmental area

    Su, C.; Zhou, H.; Gong, L. et al.
    NeuroImage, 237, 118136

    Researchers scanned the brains of young TikTok users in China. Videos picked for each person by TikTok's recommendations lit up parts of the brain linked to reward and self-focused thinking more than videos not picked for them. In a survey, users with more signs of problem use reported less self-control. Brain activity alone does not show addiction or harm.

    Design
    Controlled experiment
    Year
    2021
    Where
    China
    Topics
    Addictive design, Algorithmic recommendation, Digital behaviour
    Limitations recorded

A study is published here only after its source is identified and verified, its design classified, its finding checked against the original, and its limitations recorded. How we judge evidence