Understanding Attention

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Short-form video consumption is far from benign.

Prolonged exposure can negatively impact our mental health.

Establishing healthy boundaries around short-form content is key to avoiding problematic effects.

Time is tight, fleeting, and finite. According to the ancient Greek philosopher, Theophrastus, it is both the most valuable thing a man can spend, and its waste is the most extravagant and costly of all expenses.

With the widespread rise of internet usage and social media platforms, we have found a novel—and highly problematic—way of spending our leisure time: short-form video (SFV) consumption. According to 2025 statistics, 85% of internet users watch short-form videos online, with the average person watching over three hours a day of SFV content on Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and other social media platforms. Hyper-optimized algorithms deliver an endless supply of SFVs designed to grab and hold our attention, keeping us watching for hours on end.

The reality of SFV consumption is far from benign. Consumption of SFV content, according to researchers around the world, is negatively impacting our mental health and eroding our ability to focus and concentrate. It delivers endless dopamine hits that keep us coming back for more, and leave us progressively more disconnected in an increasingly hyper-connected world.

According to research published in 2025, "Dopamine-scrolling: a modern public health challenge requiring urgent attention," the small doses of dopamine released while watching SFV content and the varying reward schedules are similar to the “reward uncertainty … that makes many behavioral........

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