Reclaiming the Feed: Examining and Transforming Social Media Scrolling for Young Women
Research Advisor: Dr. Judith Taylor
Abstract
Social media has long been recognized as a powerful, but often harmful, force in young women’s lives. As its use continues to grow, so has policy interest in combatting its negative effects. However, traditional top-down, restrictive solutions have rarely been successful in positively affecting social media engagement. Additionally, while much research has pointed to the quantitative outcomes of social media use, there remains a gap in understanding how women themselves subjectively experience social media scrolling and reckon with its impact on their lives.
In the face of these urgent, complex issues, this research investigates the possibility of peer-based, reflective interventions. It will explore how young women’s scrolling behaviour influences their real-world experiences, as well as how intentionality and peer dialogue can help them take agency over this. I aim to not only study how social media scrolling occurs but how users can mitigate negative effects and transform social media into a more positive tool.
I will conduct three 60-minute weekly focus groups with 8 women-identified, self-identified “active social media users” at the University of Toronto, aged 18-24. Participants will discuss personal scrolling habits and online experiences, incorporate intentionality into scrolling between sessions, and reflect on the efficacy of the discussions themselves as a dialogical intervention. They will also have an opportunity to voice anything they were not comfortable sharing with the entire group through a private exit survey.
Introduction
Social media has vastly shifted the terrain of messaging that young women receive; we are now inundated on a near constant basis with content that changes how we perceive ourselves and interact with the world. From body image to career choices, the negative impacts of scrolling on young women are well-established (Fardouly & Vartanian, 2016; Global Education Monitoring Report Team, 2024). Consequently, experts and policymakers have significant interest in these impacts; several Canadian provinces, for example, introduced school cellphone bans for the 2024-25 school year (Hobson, 2024).
However, despite attempts at spreading positive content, regulating harmful content, and limiting scrolling, external solutions tend to fall flat. Therefore, rather than seek solutions which try to transform an obstinate digital landscape or eradicate social media use, I am interested in examining and altering scrolling behaviour and habits. Decreasing negative content online and social media use are important long-term goals. In the meantime, however, we need to understand how young women experience scrolling, and collaboratively develop solutions to mitigate harm. How can young women develop tools to take agency over their scrolling experiences, and look introspectively to create healthier—even beneficial—scrolling habits? How can they help each other, through open dialogue? As a young woman on social media myself, I see how pervasive the effects of scrolling are for my peer group, yet conversations about our experiences and feelings are rare.
My research proposes to bring together women-identified social media users to discuss scrolling behaviour and their social media feeds. Using focus groups, I aim to investigate how young women understand social media’s value, their consumption of it, and its impacts on them. Specifically, they will discuss which content sticks out—what is affirming and positive, what feels damaging, and how they relate to this conflicting content. My research will reveal how young women see scrolling impacting their real-world experiences, which behaviours can make time spent online more positive, and show how discussion and peer support might mitigate negative effects.
Research Objectives & Questions
I seek to understand and document young women’s scrolling behaviour, drawing a line between what they react to most—positive or negative—and how this affects their experience of the world. Furthermore, my research will evaluate the efficacy of dialogue and intentionality in cultivating positive online experiences, while helping participants critically evaluate their scrolling habits.
My primary research question will be, how do young women perceive the relationship between scrolling behaviour and how they navigate their lives, and how does adopting new habits in community with others affect this dynamic? Supplementary questions include, what strategies do young women implement to curate their scrolling experience or address negative effects? Which habits influence whether their online experience enables or impedes them? Which kinds of content promote discomfort or insecurity, compared to solidarity or joy?
Background
Social media has been shown to be enormously impactful on a variety of aspects of life, and young women spend more time on it than any other group (Kemp, 2025). For this demographic in particular, scrolling is closely tied with self-esteem, mood, and body image outcomes (Hogue & Mills, 2019; Pop et al., 2022). However, common measures to address these issues are surprisingly ineffective; though there has been recent policy interest in banning social media use for certain ages or in certain settings (Associated Press, 2024; Hobson, 2024), a recent scoping review of school cell phone bans found a lack of significant evidence indicating that they were effective (Campbell et al., 2024). Rather, the authors called for young people to be educated “in responsible engagement with mobile phones” (p. 258). In fact, social media bans have been shown to hurt digital literacy, prevent social connection, and spark feelings of isolation (McAlister et al., 2024). This speaks to the paradoxes of social media use; increasingly, studies point to social media as a complex site of both positive and negative connection, identity formation, and learning (Shankleman et al., 2021).
Though quantitative studies indicate important general trends of negative mental health outcomes, they often cannot capture the nuances of young women’s online experiences. Some research has recently emerged focused on exploring the views and experiences of young people on social media (Shankleman et al., 2021). However, there is still relatively little information in this area, and even less concerning young women in particular. Few studies have explored how they make sense of their scrolling, especially in their own words. Furthermore, research that does exist often does not move beyond diagnosis.
In light of this, this research centres around not only developing a more thorough understanding of how young women experience their time scrolling on social media, but also collaborative strategies that help them engage more consciously and intentionally. As Montell (1999) puts it, focus groups provide an opportunity for “research that does not merely describe what is, but that participates in shaping what could be” (p. 45). In this spirit, this research moves beyond documenting harm to supporting women in shaping more conscious digital practices.
Methodology
I will conduct weekly focus groups with women-identified youth (ages 18-24) for the first three weeks of my research. This can be a uniquely feminist methodology, creating a more egalitarian researcher-subject dynamic and facilitating empowerment and consciousness-raising (Montell, 1999). Using focus groups will allow for richer insights and benefit participants through the opportunity to develop skills for critically reflecting on online content.
At the first session, we will discuss participants’ present scrolling habits and their understandings of how content impacts them. Over the next weeks, they will try to incorporate intentionality into their scrolling—for example, unfollowing content which bothers them, and being mindful of the emotions different content provokes.
To identify influential content and spark discussion, sessions will begin with participants highlighting impactful content they’ve recently seen. According to Spradley (1979), starting with an interesting yet straightforward question is an effective method of creating rapport. This will also foster intentionality, by asking participants to document a piece of content each week and summarize its impact on them. Participant responses, including pre-discussion reflections and comments in discussion, will be recorded, transcribed, and analyzed thematically using MAXQDA to identify patterns in scrolling habits, the perceived value of discussions, and how scrolling prepares women—for good or bad—for life.
Focus groups will take place over Zoom with participants in Toronto, as I live in BC. Woodyatt et al. (2016) show that online virtual focus groups generate data of equal quality to in-person groups, and can even allow for more engagement on personal or sensitive topics.
After the conclusion of focus groups, participants will be sent an exit survey which gives them an opportunity to share any experiences or reflections that they did not feel comfortable discussing with the group. Participation in this survey is optional.
Training / Certifications Needed
While this research does not require any certifications, there are areas in which it will be useful for me to educate myself. I will be using MAXQDA’s extensive database of video tutorials, webinars, and literature to educate myself on use of the software. Specifically, I will be attending the free webinars “Getting started: An introduction to MAXQDA” on May 6 and “Thematic Analysis in MAXQDA” on May 13. Over the course of May, I will dedicate a few hours each week to reviewing these materials so that I am comfortable with the software by June.
More broadly, I will review literature on effectively conducting focus groups and building rapport. I also completed the Tri-Council Policy Statement Course on Research Ethics in November to prepare me for conducting this research ethically.
Timeline
As outlined above, I will spend the months leading up to the research period (April, May, and part of June) working on a couple key items. I have already written my ethics protocol application, including consent forms and a focus group interview guide. After receiving ethics approval, I will begin recruiting participants at the University of Toronto through social media (e.g. posts, forums, discussion boards) and word of mouth. I will provide them with consent forms to review and sign, and schedule the focus group sessions. During this time, I will also educate myself on use of the MAXQDA software and moderating focus groups.
Finally, I will familiarize myself with Zoom, particularly its transcription services. If these are adequate, this is what I will use to transcribe my focus groups. If there are any issues with Zoom transcription, however, I have accounted for this in my budget, by including the cost of a MAXQDA add-on of 5 hours of transcription.
The first focus group session will take place as soon as possible once the research period begins. Between sessions, I will write memos documenting my impressions and potential themes for analysis, as well as reread transcripts to begin preliminary coding. Around halfway through the period, when all three sessions are complete, I will travel to Toronto and meet with my research supervisor in person at least once to discuss the progress of my data analysis. I will also issue an exit survey to participants to give them an opportunity to share experiences or thoughts which they were not comfortable talking about in a group setting, and reflect on what they did (or did not) gain from participation in the focus groups.
I plan to complete my final report before the end of the research period. However, if unforeseen challenges arise causing the research to take longer, I may work on it during August. I will then submit my report and poster before September 1, completing my research summer.
Potential Impact
This research will aid in pinpointing where young women derive confidence and insecurity from on social media, and explore their own understandings of this dynamic. It could impact curricula and broader policy by revealing solutions that create more beneficial scrolling habits and providing dialogical tools for mitigating social media’s negative effects. The focus groups themselves serve as a potential new mode of inquiry and intervention, replicable not only for future researchers but for educators, parents, or peers. By bringing the isolated activity of scrolling into a space of discussion, this research aims to identify specific techniques to help young women critically engage with social media and curate a more uplifting online experience.
Finally, I aim to provide value to participants of the focus group themselves, by equipping them with tools to think meaningfully about the content they encounter and share these concerns with peers. Findings will inform interventions that aim to reduce social media’s negative impacts and broader discussions on media literacy.
References
Associated Press. (2024, March 26). Ron DeSantis signs Florida social media ban for children into law. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/26/ron-desantis-florida-social-media-ban-children
Campbell, M., Edwards, E. J., Pennell, D., Poed, S., Lister, V., Gillett-Swan, J., Kelly, A., Zec, D., & Nguyen, T.-A. (2024). Evidence for and against banning mobile phones in schools: A scoping review. Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools, 34(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/20556365241270394
Fardouly, J., & Vartanian, L. R. (2016). Social Media and Body Image Concerns: Current Research and Future Directions. Current Opinion in Psychology, 9, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2015.09.005
Global Education Monitoring Report Team. (2024). Global Education Monitoring Report: Gender report – Technology on her terms. UNESCO. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000389406
Hobson, B. (2024, September 24). “A cultural shift”: Canadian schools navigating new world of cellphone bans. Global News. https://globalnews.ca/news/10771925/canada-school-cellphone-ban-reality/
Hogue, J. V., & Mills, J. S. (2019). The effects of active social media engagement with peers on body image in young women. Body Image, 28(1), 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2018.11.002
Kemp, S. (2025, February 5). Digital 2025: The State of Social Media in 2025. DataReportal. https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2025-sub-section-state-of-social
McAlister, K., Beatty, C., Smith-Caswell, J., Yourell, J., & Huberty, J. (2024). Social Media Use in Adolescents: Bans, Benefits, and Emotion Regulation Behaviors. JMIR Mental Health, 11. https://doi.org/10.2196/64626
Montell, F. (1999). Focus Group Interviews: A New Feminist Method. NWSA Journal, 11(1), 44–71. https://doi.org/10.2307/4316628
Pop, L. M., Iorga, M., & Iurcov, R. (2022). Body-Esteem, Self-Esteem and Loneliness among Social Media Young Users. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(9). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19095064
Shankleman, M., Hammond, L., & Jones, F. W. (2021). Adolescent Social Media Use and Well-Being: A Systematic Review and Thematic Meta-synthesis. Adolescent Research Review, 6(4). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40894-021-00154-5
Spradley, J. P. (1979). The Ethnographic Interview. Waveland Press.
Woodyatt, C. R., Finneran, C. A., & Stephenson, R. (2016). In-Person Versus Online Focus Group Discussions. Qualitative Health Research, 26(6), 741–749. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732316631510