How deep reading can counter misinformation and doomscrolling

The typical American looks at their phone more than 140 times daily, spending an average of 4.5 hours on it each day; 57% of people say they are "addicted" to their phone.

Technology firms, influencers and other creators are all competing for that attention, creating incentives for misinformation to flourish.

Against this difficult information environment, robust critical-reading abilities are just as essential and pertinent as ever.

Unfortunately, literacy remains a major issue. Reading-comprehension results are still falling. Most Generation Z parents do not read aloud to their small children, regarding it as a chore. Many university students are unable to finish a complete book.

With limitless feeds and effortless options to repost and share material, social-media platforms are built to promote passive engagement, often used to ease boredom and avoid stress.

As a cognitive scientist and a literacy specialist, we study how people process information while reading. Our research leads us to believe that deep reading can help combat misinformation while also easing stress and loneliness.

Moving beyond a rapid skim can be difficult, yet you can use strategies that build crucial reading skills.

Deep reading versus doomscrolling

Smartphones and social media serve many purposes: people use them to combat boredom, gain attention, connect with others and circulate news. However, the unlimited information available at your fingertips can produce information overload, disrupting both attention and decision-making.

Cognitive-science research offers an explanation for the way scrolling conditions the brain towards passive thought.

To maintain engagement, social-media algorithms supply content resembling material users have previously engaged with, strengthening their existing beliefs through similar posts. Seeing information repeatedly makes it seem more credible, particularly when it is repeated by multiple sources. This phenomenon is known as illusory truth.

By comparison, deep reading is the deliberate act of engaging with information critically, analytically and empathetically. It requires readers to infer meaning, identify links, consider differing viewpoints and challenge potential interpretations.

Deep reading takes work. It may bring about unpleasant emotions, including irritation and confusion, and can frequently feel uncomfortable. This raises an important question: why choose the demanding work of deep reading when scrolling and skimming are so easy?

What makes mental effort worthwhile

Unthinking scrolling can have unintended effects. Smartphone and social-media use are linked with greater boredom and loneliness, while doomscrolling is associated with increased existential anxiety and misanthropy.

Conversely, although attention and effort can be draining, they may enhance a sense of purpose and reinforce social bonds. People are also motivated to finish activities that advance their personal goals, especially where others acknowledge those activities. Sharing books may therefore be one way to encourage deep reading.

For instance, a teacher may lead pupils through longer works, such as novels, alongside active book discussions that support comprehension and interpretation. Debate continues over the practice of assigning extracts rather than complete books in schools, but evidence indicates that sustained reading in social environments can encourage a lifelong enjoyment of reading.

Social media itself can be a constructive tool when social connection is the goal. BookTok is a thriving online community in which TikTok users discuss and recommend books. Enthusiasts share detailed analyses of "K-Pop Demon Hunters" and other films or programmes, showing that close analysis still belongs within social media's endless scroll.

Slowing down for deep reading

You can take practical steps to engage meaningfully with the continual flow of information you encounter. Naturally, the process can be demanding, and everyone has limited effort and attention available. It is vital to acknowledge these finite cognitive resources and choose deliberately how to use them.

Merely recognising how digital reading habits affect the brain can foster different attitudes and routines around consuming information. Even pausing can make people less vulnerable to misinformation. Spending a few additional seconds consciously assessing information can counter illusory truth, suggesting that deliberately slowing down, even slightly, is helpful.

To read deeply is to choose intentionally when different reading speeds are appropriate: slowing down to work through challenging passages, appreciate memorable prose, assess information critically and consider a text's meaning. Rather than simply extracting information, it means beginning a dialogue with the text.

Awareness does not require you to avoid doomscrolling after a long day. It does, however, involve recognising the need to spend more time with a single text and to encounter a range of perspectives.

Begin modestly, perhaps with poetry, short stories or essays, then progress to longer material. Team up with a friend or family member and set yourselves the target of reading a full-length novel or nonfiction book.

Work towards that target in manageable sections-for example, by reading one chapter daily and talking about it with your reading companion. Regular deep reading, including reading novels, can expose you to fresh ideas and perspectives to discuss with others, face to face or even on TikTok.

JT Torres, Director of the Harte Center for Teaching and Learning, Washington and Lee University and Jeff Saerys-Foy, Associate Professor of Psychology, Quinnipiac University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.