Social media overload, fatigue, and discontinuance intention among Generation Z Douyin users in Shenzhen, China: A cross-sectional structural equation modelling study

Short-video platforms combine algorithmic recommendation, continuous scrolling, rapid audiovisual stimulation, and recurrent social interaction. These conditions may create distinct forms of overload and fatigue, yet the pathways from different overload dimensions to discontinuance intention may not be psychologically uniform. This study examined these pathways among Generation Z Douyin users in Shenzhen and tested fatigue as a mediator and flow experience as a moderator. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted among Douyin users aged 18–29 years living in Shenzhen, China. Data collection began after ethics approval. The Wenjuanxing questionnaire was distributed through WeChat. Of 583 questionnaires received, 568 valid responses were analysed using partial least squares structural equation modelling. Information, system-feature, communication, and social overload were positively associated with discontinuance intention. Fatigue mediated the effects of information, system-feature, and communication overload, but not social overload. The fatigue × flow interaction was positive (β = 0.112, p = 0.013): the conditional fatigue-discontinuance slope increased from 0.247 at low flow to 0.471 at high flow. The model explained 28.8% of fatigue and 47.4% of discontinuance intention. The findings indicate heterogeneous pathways from overload to discontinuance. Cognitively and interactionally demanding overloads were transmitted partly through fatigue, whereas social overload was related to discontinuance without a statistically supported fatigue pathway. Flow intensified rather than buffered the association between fatigue and discontinuance, suggesting that immersive engagement may coexist with, and under high fatigue amplify, self-regulatory withdrawal intentions. Longitudinal and behavioural data are needed before causal mechanisms can be established.