To unplug or not to unplug: learning the social media habits of adults

Abstract

The personal and business use of social media (SM) has increased rapidly in the past decade. Many research studies suggest a connection between this increased use of social media and the damage to mental and physical health and, therefore, encourage a practice of regularly unplugging from technology to relieve the damage done by social media. Based in phenomenological inquiry, this study examined the lived experiences of four adult women who unplugged from social media for two weeks and journaled about the entire experience. More specifically, by applying self-regulated learning and storytelling, this study looked at the three phase self-regulated unplugging process of the research participants (forethought, performance and self-reflection) discovered by Zimmerman (1986). The research identified six themes related to adults’ use of social media and sheds light on the potential benefits for adults to regularly unplug from social media. Findings suggest that unplugging from social media has several personal and mental benefits for working adults. Recommendations for future research studies are proposed.