‘Can’t stop, won’t stop: the doomscrolling scale Indonesia version’

Key findings from this study

This research indicates that:

• The Indonesian version of the Doomscrolling Scale maintains a unidimensional structure with 15 items consistent with the original instrument.
• The scale achieved excellent internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.939), supporting its reliability for use with Indonesian social media users.
• This culturally adapted instrument provides a validated foundation for future research on doomscrolling behavior in Indonesia.

Overview

This study examined the structural validity and internal reliability of an Indonesian-language adaptation of the Doomscrolling Scale, a measurement instrument designed to assess compulsive social media consumption behavior associated with news exposure.

Methods and approach

The research enrolled 502 Indonesian social media users aged 18-40 years. Data collection occurred in 2025 via online questionnaire distributed through Google Forms. Confirmatory factor analysis with JASP software evaluated the scale's dimensionality and psychometric properties.

Results

Confirmatory factor analysis supported a unidimensional structure comprising 15 items. The Indonesian Doomscrolling Scale demonstrated excellent internal consistency with Cronbach's α = 0.939, indicating strong correlations among items measuring the underlying construct. These psychometric properties establish the instrument's foundational reliability for assessing doomscrolling behavior in Indonesian-speaking populations.

Implications

The validation of a culturally adapted doomscrolling measurement tool addresses a documented gap in available instruments for Indonesian research contexts. The scale's robust internal consistency supports its application in future epidemiological and behavioral research examining social media consumption patterns and associated psychological outcomes. The instrument may facilitate evidence-based development of digital literacy interventions and mental health initiatives tailored to Indonesian populations.

Prospective research can employ this validated scale to examine doomscrolling prevalence, correlates, and trajectories across diverse demographic subgroups. Longitudinal studies leveraging this tool may clarify temporal associations between doomscrolling intensity and indicators of psychological distress or information processing deficits. The availability of a reliable local-language assessment may also support comparative investigations across cultural and linguistic contexts.

Scope and limitations

This summary is based on the study abstract and available metadata. It does not include a full analysis of the complete paper, supplementary materials, or underlying datasets unless explicitly stated. Findings should be interpreted in the context of the original publication.