Analysis of the Relationship between Binge Watching and Problematic Symptoms in Pakistani Youth

Abstract

Binge watching has been positioned overwhelmingly as an addiction in academic literature. However, most recent studies suggest that it is not addictive for all audiences. This research caters to the gap of empirical research which investigates the underlying individual characteristics that contribute to problematic binge watching. Building on existing Uses and Gratification and Uses and Dependency fran1ework this study investigated a sample of n=297 in Pakistani context to find out which audience with respect to their motivations, demographics and binge watching platfotms are more susceptible to developing problematic behaviours than others. A Pearson's con·elation analysis revealed that binge watchers with coping and escapism motivation showed the greatest tendency to exhibit problematic symptoms. By conducting a One Way-ANOVA and T-Test respectively it was found that binge watchers from 18-22 years and female categories exhibited the most problematic symptoms. However, binge watching platforms did not appear to have an effect on the occurrence of problematic symptoms. It is recommended that binge watching platfonns introduce disclaimers for vulnerable audience to keep their binge watching habits in check so the prevalence of problematic behaviours may be avoided. Future research can now go beyond the addiction perspective and investigate other cultural, technological and behavioural aspects of binge watching.