SynthesisFrontiers in psychology2026
Doomscrolling, mental health, and psychological well-being in adolescents and adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Frontiers in psychology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
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Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
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Abstract
Background: Doomscrolling is persistent or repetitive engagement with predominantly negative, threatening, or distressing online information, often accompanied by difficulty disengaging. It overlaps with, but is not interchangeable with, problematic social media use, general negative-news exposure, or broader problematic internet use. We synthesized associations between doomscrolling and mental-health or psychological well-being outcomes. Methods: This PROSPERO-registered systematic review and meta-analysis (CRD420261395295) followed PRISMA 2020. Searches covered nine bibliographic, registry, grey-literature, and citation sources through 20 May 2026. Article- or supplement-reported zero-order Pearson or Spearman correlations were synthesized using Fisher's z transformation and random-effects models with restricted maximum likelihood estimation and Hartung-Knapp adjustment. Adjusted regression or path coefficients and duplicated same-sample scale versions were not pooled. Design-appropriate JBI checklists and GRADE were used for critical appraisal and certainty assessment. Results: Forty-four reports representing 44 unique studies were included. Twenty-one studies (23 independent analytic samples) contributed 40 effects to the five primary meta-analyses; the remaining 23 reports contributed narrative or nonprimary quantitative evidence. Doomscrolling was associated with anxiety ( Conclusion: Doomscrolling is associated with poorer mental-health and well-being outcomes, but the evidence does not establish causality. Cross-sectional designs, high heterogeneity, residual confounding, and geographic concentration limit inference. Standardized measurement, longitudinal and ecological momentary assessment studies, experiments, and preregistered cross-cultural research are needed. Systematic review registration: https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/PROSPERO/view/CRD420261395295, identifier PROSPERO (CRD420261395295).
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.