Social Media and Memory in The Age of Instant Gratification

O'Hanlon, Aoife (2025) Social Media and Memory in The Age of Instant Gratification. Undergraduate thesis, Dublin, National College of Ireland.

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Abstract

Aims: This study was designed to determine if there was a positive correlation between social media usage and memory retention, more specifically if high levels of social media usage corresponded with low levels of memory retention. This study also examined if demographic factors such as age and gender play a role in memory retention and social media use. Additional research was implemented to test cognitive failures in relation to participants age.

Methods: An online survey was administered to participants (N=110) in which they answered demographic questions, followed by the Social Media Usage Scale (SMUS), they then proceeded to perform a memory task (Recall Task), and finally the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire (CFQ). Anonymised data was then input into SPSS for data analysis. Many tests were run to test the previously mentioned aims and hypotheses.

Results: Results showed slight but ultimately no significance when CQF scores and recall scores were tested against age, meaning the initial hypothesis was not supported. This was also true for gender, however this aligns with the hypothesis. Conversely, significance was found between SMUS scores and age, with older participants scoring lower than younger participants overall. This highlights the need for new means to be tested in the future.

Item Type:	Thesis (Undergraduate)
Supervisors:	Name Email Thornberry, Conor UNSPECIFIED
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Social media use; memory retention; cognitive failures; age-groups
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > Psychology B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > Psychology > Cognition B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > Psychology > Cognitive psychology Z Bibliography. Library Science. Information Resources > ZA Information resources > ZA4150 Computer Network Resources > The Internet > World Wide Web > Websites > Online social networks T Technology > TK Electrical engineering. Electronics. Nuclear engineering > Telecommunications > The Internet > World Wide Web > Websites > Online social networks
Divisions:	School of Business (- 2025) > BA (Honours) in Psychology
Depositing User:	Ciara O'Brien
Date Deposited:	11 Nov 2025 13:31
Last Modified:	11 Nov 2025 13:31
URI:	https://norma.ncirl.ie/id/eprint/8910

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