Assignment 3: Time Diary #USFLIS4380SMS20

I tracked my social media usage over the past 4 days, and I saw definite traces of a routine. The platforms I used over the 4 days include Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok. I only use social media on my phone, I have used Instagram on my laptop before, but I prefer the app. Over the 4 days, I only used social media on my phone. There was a visible routine of usage in the mornings, afternoons, and evenings. The amount of time spent on the apps changed from day to day.

On the first day, I was on social media the least, spending only 58 minutes in total. I went on Instagram for 2 minutes at 10 am, then I went onto Snapchat around 1-2 pm for 26 minutes, and finally, in the evening I spent 30 minutes on TikTok and Instagram combined from 7-8 pm and around 11 pm. The other days went very similar to this but with different amounts of time spent and times logged on were slightly different. On the second and third days, I went on again in the morning for only 2 minutes. Though there is also a pattern of going on in the afternoon and evening this was a very noticeable trend to me. I go on within a few minutes of waking up in the morning without even thinking about it before I just get off the app, it has become a habit.

Instagram and TikTok I only use for scrolling purposes, though Instagram I see people I know TikTok I am following strangers. Snapchat, I used significantly more than the other two apps. My time on Snapchat lasted around 25 minutes on average over the 4 days. I use Snapchat to communicate with friends rather than text sometimes, so it made sense that I used it more than other social media apps. Overall I haven’t been using social media as much as I have in the past. I have a definite routine in that I almost always go on Instagram for around 2 minutes to scroll in the morning then in the afternoon and evening I switch off between TikTok and Instagram to scroll with Snapchat always being used for a few minutes at a time to communicate with friends.