Excessive short-form video use is associated with increased risk-taking but not with altered ambiguity-based decision-making.

Abstract

Background: A tendency toward riskier and more ambiguous decision-making is a key marker of addictive behaviors. Previous studies examining the relationship between excessive media use and risk/ambiguity decision-making have primarily focused on video games or traditional social media. However, given the widespread use and unique characteristics of short-form videos, it remains unclear whether excessive short-form video users exhibit similar decision-making deficits. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between excessive short-form video use and decision-making under risk and ambiguity.

Methods: A total of 85 college students were screened using the Excessive Short-Form Video Use Scale and divided into an excessive-use group (N = 42) and a non-excessive control group (N = 43). Participants then completed the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), performing 100 trials to assess their risky and ambiguous decision-making.

Results: Compared to the control group, the excessive short-form video use group exhibited significantly lower IGT net scores under risk (the last 40 trials of the IGT), while performing equally well under ambiguity (the first 40 trials of the IGT). Furthermore, correlational analyses revealed that higher short-form video overuse scores were associated with increased risk-taking behavior but showed no significant relationship with ambiguous decision-making performance.

Conclusions: Our findings suggest that excessive short-form video users demonstrate increased risk-taking compared to non-excessive users. This result supports the similarity between excessive short-form video use and other addictive disorders.