Binge-watching

Con 1: Binge-watching can cause unhappiness and mental health issues.

A University of Texas study found that binge-watchers were more likely to be depressed, lonely, and have less self-control. One of the study’s authors, Yoon Hi Sung, stated: “When binge-watching becomes rampant, viewers may start to neglect their work and their relationships with others.” [15] [16]

Binge-watching can lead to digital addiction. As clinical psychologist Renee Carr points out, “The neuronal pathways that cause heroin and sex addictions are the same as an addiction to binge watching. Your body does not discriminate against pleasure. It can become addicted to any activity or substances that consistently produces dopamine.”[8]

A study found that rather than relieving stress, excessive TV watching is associated with regret, guilt, and feelings of failure because of a sense of wasted time.[18]  When that binge-watching session is over, the viewer may be more likely to “mourn” the loss of the show by experiencing depression, anxiety, and feelings of emptiness. [19] [20]

“You would assume that people will feel happier because they’re watching their show, or they’re [watching] some entertainment,” says Maricarmen Vizcaino of the College of Health Solutions at the University of Arizona, “but that’s not the case—people are more stressed out, if they’re binge-watching.”[32] [33]

Con 2: Binge-watching can cause serious physical health problems.

Sitting for extended periods of time has long been linked to slow metabolism, heart disease, cancer, blood clots, and deep vein thrombosis. Binge-watchers are also prone to sit on the couch eating unhealthy food and snacking more, which is linked to weight gain. [21] [22] [23]

One study found that binge-watching was related to poorer sleep quality, more fatigue, and insomnia, because of pre-sleep arousal. Researchers have also found that watching three or more hours of TV a day is associated with premature death. [5] [25]

Another study concluded, “Heavy users reported the least healthful dietary patterns and the poorest health-related characteristics…. Binge-watching was also significantly associated with less healthy dietary patterns, including frequency of fast-food consumption as well as eating family meals in front of a television, and perceived stress.” [32] [33]

Con 3: Binge-watching can make the show less fulfilling.

A study found that people who watched multiple episodes of a show in one sitting reported “significantly less show enjoyment” than people who watched one episode at a time. Damon Lindelof, the co-creator of popular shows such as Lost, stated, “This idea of anticipation. That Christmas morning feeling … doesn’t exist in binge culture.” In fact, a single release of all episodes of a show’s new season can even harm the overall popularity and profitability of the show; it can diminish the impact and anticipation that the show could have experienced had the release of the episodes been spread out over time, allowing each episode to spur discussion among the public and the press, building fandom and viewership for each new episode.[26] [27]

The popularity of binging shows also makes social media a minefield of spoilers for people who haven’t had time to finish a new season, and a lack of agreement over when the spoiler embargo should be lifted causes rifts among shows’ fan bases. This is just one reason streaming platforms have started to revert back to the one-episode-a-week format when releasing a new show.[29] [35]

Furthermore, as binge-watchers reach back into TV archives and watch numerous episodes of serial TV at once, the enjoyment, fan interaction, and show itself are diminished. “The writers of the Shondaland empire took their online fandoms incredibly seriously, live-tweeting, doing Q&As, engaging with viewers through social media as a matter of policy. And the shows reflected this. It can be fun to binge a season of Scandal, but it’s also strangely difficult. The shows move at a breakneck pace, knowing precisely how much viewers can take for 45 minutes at a time. They feature twist after twist after twist, knowing that viewers viewing in real time will turn to their apps or their group texts to discuss. They are built to supercharge the energy of their time slot. Bingeing four Scandal episodes in a row on a streamer—out of their native, weekly habitat—is thus a disorienting, disembodied experience,” explained The New Republic TV critic Phillip Maciak. [36]