From Enjoyment to Exhaustion: A Thematic Analysis of the Effects of Social Media Fatigue on Content Creators’ Well-being

Description

Savita and Babita Kumar (School of Business Studies, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab)

The emergence of social media fatigue has become a significant digital well-being issue that need to be addressed shortly, particularly in content creators. Whose reliance on these platforms requires constant engagement and they are actively involved creating and sharing content on these platforms making them more vulnerable to SMF. And its effects. Recognizing this need, the present study was undertaken to identify the effects of social media fatigue. The study adopted a qualitative method, as exploratory research design was employed to study the experiences and effects of SMF among content creators. A sample of 25 content creators (aged 18 years & above, residing in Punjab, with at least two years of experience, active on at least two social media platforms, & spending a minimum of four hours daily on social media) were selected on purposive and snowball sampling. Focus groups discussions were conducted to collect data using semi-structured interview schedule. Data was analysed using thematic analysis, with firstly coded manually then organization and verification of themes identified using NVivo 15. The findings showed transition of content creators experiences with social media from positive to negative with maximum reporting mixed experiences. Multidimensional effects of social media fatigue were identified with Emotional effects being the most prominent, Productivity related effects (diminished creative outputs), Physical effects and Mental effects. The findings provide implications for content creators’ health and emphasizing that more sustainable and well-being-oriented collaboration practices to be adopted by marketers and social media providers.