The Urgency of Social Media “Diet” for Generation Z

Abstract

Social media and generation Z (Gen Z) are like two sides of a coin that cannot be separated. Various positive and negative impacts have arisen as a result of internet addiction among Gen Z. Thus, this research was conducted to obtain a suitable formulation for Gen Z, both in consuming information and using social media. Hopefully, this research contributes to decreasing the negative impacts from the consumption of information and use of social media. The research was conducted through a qualitative approach. Data was collected through Focus Group Discussions (FGD) through Zoom meetings and literature studies. The research findings provide a social media diet model that includes three aspects: Self-Awareness, Action, and Evaluation (SAAE). The first chart of Self-Awareness includes action, motivation, and self-knowledge. The Action aspect contains five dimensions: choosing social media that suits your needs, limiting and selecting the type of information consumed, setting a daily schedule, consuming more offline content, and doing productive activities. The Evaluation highlights the concern on obedience and consistency. Researchers believe that this model can create awareness among social media users about the importance of social media diet information and provide real implications in the application of social media diet models. The social media diet prospectively works for Gen Z and other generations. Keywords: Generation Z, information diet, social media, social media diet models, urgency.