Beyond the Scroll: Exploring How Intolerance of Uncertainty and Psychological Resilience Explain the Association Between Trait Anxiety and Doomscrolling

This study explores the relationship between “doomscrolling”—the habit of consuming continuous negative news—and trait anxiety, while considering the explanatory role of psychological resilience and intolerance of uncertainty. With constant connectivity and information overload in the digital age, doomscrolling has raised concerns about its potential to heighten anxiety. The study examines 443 participants (79.9 % female, 20.1 % male, average age 23.49 years) using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) to assess the connections between the variables.

Key findings reveal that trait anxiety significantly predicts intolerance of uncertainty (β = 0.50, p < .001) and is negatively linked to psychological resilience (β = −0.19, p < .001). Intolerance of uncertainty is negatively correlated with psychological resilience (β = −0.42, p < .001) and positively associated with doomscrolling (β = 0.29, p < .001). Psychological resilience acts as a protective factor, negatively associated with doomscrolling (β = −0.12, p < .05). Additionally, both psychological resilience and intolerance of uncertainty explain the relationship between trait anxiety and doomscrolling (β = 0.193, p < .05). These results provide insights into how intolerance of uncertainty and psychological resilience influence the connection between anxiety and doomscrolling, suggesting intervention opportunities in an anxiety-inducing digital world.