Binge Watching: Science Finally Explains Why You're Addicted to Series

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You have most likely heard of, or even practiced, binge-watching, the practice of watching several episodes of a series on a streaming platform, sometimes at a pace that defies all measure.

In a study published in the journal Acta Psychologica, researchers wanted to examine the personality traits that are linked to this intense viewing of content on Netflix and its rivals.

To see things more clearly, the authors based themselves on the big five, a concept well-known to psychologists that distinguishes five main traits: emotional stability, openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion and agreeableness. They added to these the individual's need for cognition (willingness to participate in thinking activities).

The data comes from South Korea and the participants are on average 52.5 years old, have a university degree, and are predominantly (55%) women.

What are the results ?

The scientists noted a negative correlation between binge-watching and an individual's emotional stability, openness to experience, and need for cognition. As newsmedical.net rightly points out, previous research has already shown that this tendency is seen as an ideal way to cope with emotional distress, including frustration, anxiety, and anger.

As a reminder, other research has looked at the origins and consequences of binge-watching. In 2021, we told you about this experiment carried out by Polish researchers. Scientists were able to observe that the lack of impulse control was one of the most significant factors.

Unfortunately, this tendency to chain episodes can sometimes degenerate and lead to bad eating habits, antisocial behavior, and cause poor academic and professional performance.

To delve deeper into this issue, we invite you to reread our dedicated article here. Are you a binge-watcher, and what factors do you think contribute to not knowing how to control your consumption on streaming services ? Let us know in the comments.

What to remember :

• A study looked at the potential links between personality traits and the practice of binge-watching
• A negative correlation was observed between this technique and an individual's emotional stability, openness to experience and need for cognition
• Other research has observed the harmful effects of this lack of control that pushes us to watch more and more episodes on streaming platforms

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