The Emotional Dimensions of Young Adults’ Encounters with Online Information

Paper Title

The Emotional Dimensions of Young Adults’ Encounters with Online Information

Publication Info

• Topic area: Emotional impacts of algorithmically curated online information on young adults.
• Keywords: Emotional agency, algorithmic curation, digital wellbeing, self-care, online harms, social media, information encounters, personalisation, care-centered design, misinformation.

Background and Problem

• Problem / challenge: Existing frameworks for understanding online information encounters focus on control, visibility, and agency, neglecting the emotional and relational dimensions. This oversight limits the ability to address emotional strain, affective overload, and self-care needs in young adults’ interactions with news.
• Significance: Emotional responses to online information encounters significantly impact young adults’ wellbeing, shaping their judgments, tactics, and identity work. Addressing this gap is essential for designing harm-reducing, emotionally aware systems.
• Motivation and related work: Prior research in HCI has explored contextual and informational factors shaping online encounters but has been criticized for individualistic approaches that overlook social and emotional influences. While some studies have examined serendipitous discovery and social motivations, the emotional dimensions of algorithmic curation remain underexplored.

Solution

• Proposed approach: A qualitative study combining a digital diary method and semi-structured interviews to investigate the emotional effects of algorithmically curated online information encounters among young adults.
• Novelty:
  1. Extends research on algorithmic agency and personalisation by using emotion as a lens for understanding young adults’ negotiation of online information.
  2. Advances scholarship on digital wellbeing and online harms through empirical accounts of emotional disorientation, self-preservation tactics, and reliance on algorithmic curation.
  3. Proposes design implications for care-centered information systems that conceptualize information consumption as an act of care for self and others.
• Procedure and key techniques:
  • Participants recorded their online news encounters over two weeks using a custom digital diary platform, annotating emotional responses and contextual details.
  • Semi-structured interviews supported by personalized data booklets (visualized summaries of diary entries) encouraged reflection and critical engagement.
  • Thematic analysis of diary and interview data identified key emotional responses, tactics for self-preservation, and sharing practices.

Results

• Concrete findings:
  • Participants experienced emotional disorientation, resignation, and conflicted enjoyment in their algorithmically curated news feeds.
  • Emotional cues, such as irritation at clickbait or relief from distressing content, guided judgments of credibility and relevance.
  • Participants employed micro-tactics (e.g., modulating clicks, curating searches) to manage algorithmic signals and cultivate safer feeds.
  • Sharing practices were shaped by care, social anxiety, and identity work, balancing emotional exposure and self-presentation.
• Advantage over baselines: Provides nuanced insights into the emotional dimensions of online information encounters, which are often overlooked in existing HCI research focused on cognitive agency and control.
• Experiments / evaluation:
  • 14 participants aged 16–35 from the North-East UK recorded 920 links over two weeks.
  • Interviews averaged 67 minutes and explored habits, perceptions of veracity, and the role of media platforms.
  • Inductive thematic analysis identified recurring emotional themes and strategies.
• Limitations and future work:
  • Limited geographic and demographic diversity (mostly female participants from a single region).
  • Snapshot approach may not capture all news encounters or motivations.
  • Future research should explore emotional effects in specific socio-cultural contexts (e.g., health, elections) and develop care-centered algorithmic systems.

Summary

This study investigates the emotional dimensions of young adults’ encounters with algorithmically curated online information, revealing how emotions shape judgments, tactics, and sharing practices. Participants experienced emotional disorientation, resignation, and conflicted enjoyment, relying on micro-strategies to manage algorithmic signals and protect their wellbeing. Sharing practices were driven by care and identity work, highlighting the relational aspects of online information consumption. The findings call for care-centered design approaches in HCI that support emotional resilience, empathetic engagement, and harm-reducing practices in digital environments. Future research should explore broader socio-cultural contexts and develop systems that optimize for care and emotional wellbeing.