This habit is on par with meditation for boosting hope and reducing stress : NPR

Research reveals that people who feel depressed are more likely to seek out negative content on social media. But those who watch inspiring stories are more optimistic and less stressed.

Oscar Wong/Moment RF/Getty Images

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Oscar Wong/Moment RF/Getty Images

Our social media feeds can push us to the dark side, with content full of conflict and anger, or videos that make us feel bad about ourselves.

But there is a way to reprogram what you see by making different choices. And a new study finds that three to five minutes of inspirational content every day can help you feel more positive.

Researchers scoured the internet for videos that elicited “wow” emojis or went viral. They identified “underdog” narratives, in which a person overcomes adversity, such as the real-life story of Sean Swarner, a cancer survivor who set out to climb Mount Everest. He had battled Hodgkin lymphoma and had only one functioning lung.

As part of the study, participants watched a video of Swarner describing his quest, as well as other similar videos showing people succeeding against all odds.

It turns out that watching someone overcome adversity can make us feel good. “We found that people felt more hopeful after watching the inspirational videos,” says study author Robin Nabi of UC Santa Barbara. “And this hope foreshadowed a reduction in stress over the next ten days,” she says.

The study included about a thousand adults in the United States, ages 18 to 86. One group watched an inspirational video, approximately three to five minutes long, every day for five days. Others watched comedies, while another group did a few minutes of meditation and a control group watched no media. Participants completed surveys at the beginning and end of the study to assess changes in their feelings of hope and stress.

The comedy didn’t shake things up much. People who watched comedies did not differ from the control group, but the inspirational videos and meditation significantly increased hope.

“We were actually quite surprised to see how similar the effects of the inspirational videos were to those of the meditating group,” says Nabi. “Both groups felt more hopeful,” she explains – and that predicted less stress 10 days later. The research is published in Psychology of popular mediaa publication of the American Psychological Association.

Nabi says the effects haven’t been dramatic, because nothing as simple as watching a few videos can have a huge effect on your long-term well-being. Our moods and emotions are complicated and influenced by multiple factors. But even if the effects are minimal, they are still significant, she says.

“These small effects can add up over time,” says Nabi. Hope helps us feel like we can cope with the things that cause stress in our lives. “So the question is: what happens when we make it a habit?” she said.

Positive content leads to positive feelings

“This finding doesn’t surprise me at all,” says Judith Moskowitz of Northwestern University, who studies the impact of positive emotions. “It’s great that science tells us what we know intuitively: if we watch positive content, we will feel more positive and more hopeful,” she says.

As part of the study, participants were provided with the videos and agreed to watch them as part of the study. This is different from what happens when we simply start scrolling through the data. So Moskowitz says the challenge is to take this discovery and implement it in your own life.

“How can you shift your focus to find the most positive things in your feed and help you stay hopeful?” It’s tricky, she admits.

Social media algorithms can push us toward the negative, because highly exciting or exciting content tends to capture our attention and keep us on apps, even if it’s negative, says media researcher Allison Eden of Michigan State University.

“Media can be a powerful tool for coping and managing your mood,” she says. But we must proactively choose the positive.

And here’s another challenge: His research shows that people tend to seek out scary or sad content when they’re in a bad mood, rather than something that will bring them joy or calm. In fact, this preference strengthened when their mood deteriorated,” says Eden.

We don’t always make the connection between what we watch and how we feel, whether it’s the movies we choose on streaming apps or the content on our social media feeds.

Eden says there are several strategies to “counter-program” your social feeds, with the goal of seeing more “feel-good” content. Here are three things to try:

1. Sow your flow with positivity

“Make an effort so that the first things you reach for each day are the ones that will put you in a positive frame of mind,” says Eden. Find hashtags that match your interests, like positive body image, wildlife, puppies, sports moments, or content that matches your hobbies, whether it’s mahjong, pickleball, or your musical interests, anything that might help you feel good.

2. Keep a media journal

Every time you look at something, ask yourself how it makes you feel. Write down your answers. Tracking will help you connect the dots between your media use and your mood. After a few weeks, you may notice how your choices influence your well-being.

3. Clear your feed

If you see too much anxiety-inducing content or content that you don’t like, you can start over by deleting your account and opening a new one. “I do it myself,” Eden says every now and then, as a reset. This is your chance to check whether your feed is working for you or against you, and reset your online presence. Think of it as a “digital cleanse” or detox. You can also opt for a weekly break, such as a 24-hour break from social media, to gain some distance.