The Effects of Political Media Consumption on Mental Health and
Psychological Symptoms
Abstract
This study used a modified version (questions pertaining to suicide were
removed) of the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II) to further explore
the potential connection between consumption of political media from
conservative and liberal sources and increased symptoms of psychological
distress expanding beyond anger and considering feelings such as
hopelessness, despair, hysteria and paranoia. Participants began the
study by consuming one hour per day of political media. Half of the
participants consumed political media that aligned with their beliefs
and political stance for three days. The other half of the participants
consumed political media that didn’t align with their beliefs and
political stance for three days. Then they were asked to abstain from
political media for ten days. At the end of the three days and at the
end of the ten days, participants were asked to take the Beck Depression
Inventory to monitor their depression levels. It was expected that
adults (ages 18+) who eliminated consumption of political media for ten
days would score lower on a BDI-II evaluation.