*Jia Puxiu, Normaliza Abd.Rahim, Nur Haniz Mohd Nor

Abstract:

As social media becomes increasingly integrated into everyday communication, the issue of social media fatigue faced by university students is a growing concern. This study empirically examines the primary types of fatigue associated with WeChat use among university students in Liaoning Province, China. It explains how these fatigues intersect and evolve in daily use situations. Through convenience sampling, the study invited 15 university students to participate in a two-week diary study. Thematic analysis reveal that social media fatigue is primarily manifested as information overload, task-oriented use fatigue, and privacy fatigue, and these types of fatigue interact with each other, leading to emotional and behavioural exhaustion, ultimately. Based on the Uses and Gratifications Theory, the study suggests that the overlay of digital stress exacerbates anxiety, avoidance behaviours, and communication stress, while privacy concerns related to self-presentation and control of information enhance users’ concerns about sharing.

Keywords: WeChat use, social media fatigue, information overload, privacy concerns