TikTok Addiction and Attention Control in Gen Y and Gen Z: Parallel Mediating Role of Boredom Intolerance and Cognitive Fatigue

TikTok has become a dominant component of contemporary digital life; however, its implications for cognitive functioning, particularly attention control, remain underexplored. The present study investigated the relationship between TikTok addiction and attention control among Generation Y and Generation Z, with a specific focus on the parallel mediating roles of boredom intolerance and cognitive fatigue. A comparative cross-sectional design was employed, comprising 300 participants (150 Gen Y, 150 Gen Z) recruited from Haripur District, Pakistan, using stratified sampling. Data were collected from individuals who reported at least 1 hour of daily TikTok use over the past 12 months. The findings revealed that TikTok addiction had a significant negative direct effect on attention control among Gen Z. In contrast, no such effect was observed for Gen Y. Parallel mediation analyses indicated that cognitive fatigue significantly mediated the relationship between TikTok addiction and attention control in both generations. In contrast, boredom intolerance emerged as a significant mediator only among Gen Z, but not among Gen Y. Gender-based analyses further demonstrated that males in both generations exhibited higher attention control. In contrast, females in Gen Y reported higher levels of TikTok addiction. Additionally, females in Gen Z showed elevated levels of boredom intolerance and cognitive fatigue. These findings highlight important generational and gender differences in the cognitive consequences of social media use. The study underscores cognitive fatigue as a key mechanism linking TikTok addiction to attentional deficits and offers important theoretical contributions to models of digital media engagement and cognitive load. Practical implications for digital well-being and targeted interventions are discussed.