The phenomenon of “autumn roll” is not just a subjective feeling but the consequence of the combination of many powerful psychological mechanisms. Elena Shpagina, candidate of psychological sciences, associate professor of the faculty of social sciences and humanities at the Institute of Management Technology of RTU MIREA, talked about this in a conversation with Lenta.ru.
The psychologist said that November in central Russia is a time when the lack of natural sunlight and the reduction of daylight hours objectively affect the psychophysical state. This can cause what's called seasonal blues or a subclinical form of seasonal affective disorder, she explains.
In that context, social networks are turning from a communication tool into a powerful catalyst for negative experiences. Psychologist Elena Shpagina
“In the fall, social comparison becomes especially painful. In November, our reality grays out the window and rains, while algorithms continue to show us glossy pictures of other people's lives. Cognitive dissonance arises: our lives do not correspond to the “average” vivid content we see. We begin to unconsciously compare our habits with the peak moments in someone else's life. otherwise, this naturally gives rise to feelings of inferiority, melancholy and the belief that our lives are passing us by,” Shpagina explains.
Another mechanism, she says, comes into play when, in a state of mild melancholy, our brain involuntarily searches for something in the information stream that matches its current mood. Social media algorithms, tuned to attract attention, quickly caught on to this and started feeding us more and more content that confirmed our gloomy expectations: sad posts, news about the crisis, discussions about how bad things are, the psychologist noted.
We find ourselves in an “echo chamber” of our own melancholy, where the content is not diverse but, on the contrary, strongly reflects and aggravates our condition. Psychologist Elena Shpagina
To eliminate these effects, experts advise consciously managing your digital consumption: delete the feed of accounts that make you jealous or feel incompetent, and subscribe to resources that give you a neutral or positive charge. She also advises you to replace alternative impressions on social networks with real pleasures, however small, and work on your internal state, questioning yourself about the real purpose of scrolling.
Earlier, psychologist-sexologist at the Secret Center for Family and Sex Education Alina Mikhailova answered the question of whether it is possible to kiss children on the lips. According to her, this is allowed only for young children, that is, babies and preschoolers.
