Social media engagement may be driven by a depleted dopamine system seeking further stimulation after initial dopamine hits.

“People talk about the dopamine hits of social media. Those only come at the beginning, but then when you find yourself scrolling, you're like, "What am I doing?" Maybe it's that narrow visual aperture; you're a hypnotized chicken, but maybe also you are seeking more dopamine hits because guess what? That dopamine wave pool is depleted, at least for that activity.”