Psychological Mechanisms and Intervention Strategies for College Students' Short-Video Addiction in Algorithmic Recommendation Scenarios

Abstract

With the rapid proliferation of short-video platforms, short-video addiction among college students has become increasingly prominent, posing a significant challenge to both the quality of talent cultivation in higher education and the psychological and physical well-being of students. This paper systematically analyzes the psychological mechanisms underlying college students' short-video addiction from the perspective of algorithmic recommendation technologies. At the neural level, micro-duration stimuli optimized by algorithms trigger dopamine release through variable reward schedules, thereby generating conditioned usage impulses. At the psychological level, drawing upon the I-PACE (Interaction of Person-Affect-Cognition-Execution) model, the interaction between individual factors—such as time orientation, dual-system self-control, loneliness, and social support—and cognitive-emotional responses jointly drives the onset and maintenance of addictive behaviors. At the environmental level, information cocoon effects and peer social pressure further exacerbate addiction. On this basis, this paper proposes a multi-dimensional tiered intervention strategy: at the individual level, focusing on self-control training and future-oriented cognitive reappraisal; at the platform level, promoting algorithmic transparency and embedding anti-addiction design features; at the institutional level, developing mental health education and media literacy curricula; and at the societal level, refining algorithmic governance regulations and collaborative intervention networks. This study aims to provide a theoretical foundation and practical pathways for the scientific prevention and treatment of short-video addiction among college students.