To Improve Your Mood, Try Changing the Channel
It’s called “Mean World Syndrome.” George Gerbner and his colleagues coined this term almost 40 years ago in their research on the effects of violent television on society.
Essentially, this syndrome posits that heavy consumers of television believe that the world is a dangerous place. Because the research had indicated that television showed more instances of violence than we might witness in our own lives, heavy viewers of television can absorb the “TV world” into their perceptions of reality. At that time, network television was the most pervasive medium.
We now have a variety of media from which to choose. We can choose to view movies on the Hallmark Channel or we can watch cable news. Our experiences and needs will drive us towards certain media and avoid others. We use media to manage our moods, preferring certain songs when we want to relieve sadness, express rage, or motivate performance.
However, what if digital algorithms have you caught in a loop? What if your devices and apps have you primarily seeing things that resonated with your earlier bad mood? What happens when you desperately want to get out of your own thought patterns, but your media environment currently reflects your own funk?
You change the channel.
