W***** C**** Prof.

********
How Binge-Watching Fits Within the College Student Lifestyle

I. Description of the Study

In recent years, binge-watching has become the standard method for consuming series and
film franchises. The Oxford Dictionary describes it as “to watch multiple episodes of a television
program in rapid succession, typically by means of DVDs or digital streaming” (2013). There have
been arguments whether binge-watching is considered as an addiction, but others argue that the
activity provides a “holistic sensation that people feel when they act with total involvement.”

The purpose of this study is to answer the research question:

How often do college students binge-watch on streaming platforms?

The following questions were included in the conducted survey:

1. How much daily free time do you have during the school year? (excluding sleep time)
2. How much of that free time to do use to watch a show?
3. How long do you usually binge-watch a show during school breaks?

The objective of the first question is to see a scope of how much free time college students
have during the school year, and that information can be used to compare with the results from the
following questions. The second question is related to the first, and its purpose is to disclose where
binge-watching fits into a college student’s lifestyle. The purpose of the last question is to compare
the length of time college students binge-watch without the weight of academic responsibilities.
For all questions, participants were given 4 options that pertain to different times that ranged from
less than hour to 5 or more hours.

Convenience Sampling was used for this research since the study is focused on how binge-
watching fits into a college student’s lifestyle. The survey was sent through email and social media,
and 31 college students completed the google form survey. Due to the chosen sampling method, it
is likely that there are possible biases in terms of binge-watching attitudes.
II. Data Results
Raw Data Table
How much daily free time do you How much of that free How long do you usually
College
have during the school year? time do you use to binge-watch a show during
Student
(excluding sleep time) watch a show? school breaks?
1 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 5 or more hours
2 3-4 hours Less than an hour 1-2 Hours
3 1-2 hours Less than an hour 5 or more hours
4 3-4 hours Less than an hour 1-2 Hours
5 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 3-4 hours
6 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 3-4 hours
7 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 5 or more hours
8 1-2 hours 3-4 hours 5 or more hours
9 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 5 or more hours
10 1-2 hours Less than an hour 3-4 hours
11 1-2 hours 1-2 hours 3-4 hours
12 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 5 or more hours
13 3-4 hours Less than an hour 5 or more hours
14 5 or more hours 3-4 hours 3-4 hours
15 1-2 hours Less than an hour 1-2 Hours
16 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 3-4 hours
17 1-2 hours 3-4 hours 5 or more hours
18 1-2 hours Less than an hour 3-4 hours
19 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 1-2 Hours
20 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 1-2 Hours
21 3-4 hours Less than an hour 1-2 Hours
22 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 3-4 hours
23 1-2 hours 1-2 hours 5 or more hours
24 5 or more hours 3-4 hours 5 or more hours
25 3-4 hours None 5 or more hours
26 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 5 or more hours
27 3-4 hours Less than an hour Less than an hour
28 3-4 hours Less than an hour 3-4 hours
29 1-2 hours Less than an hour 1-2 Hours
30 3-4 hours 1-2 hours 1-2 Hours
31 5 or more hours 1-2 hours 5 or more hours

The raw data table shows the data collection directly retrieved from the google form.
Each student answered how much daily free time they have on average, how much of that time is
used on binge-watching, and how much time they binge-watch during breaks.
Pie Chart 1
Daily Binge-Watch Length on a School Day

The pie chart is the best visual aid to represent the collected data as it shows the percentage
of college students that uses their free time to binge-watch even when they have academic
responsibilities. It easily answers the research question of how often college students binge-watch
and shows the estimate amount of time.

Pie Chart 2
Daily Binge-Watch Length During Breaks

The second pie chart is used in the study to illustrate the collected data as it shows the
percentage of college students that binge-watch when they are free from academic responsibilities.
This graph can be used to compare the previous chart when it comes to the student’s attitude
towards binge-watching,
III. Data Analysis
The choices from the survey has been simplified and rounded up in order to get easier
statistical results.
Statistical Approach 1: Mean, Median Mode
Question 2 Question 3
MEAN 1.8387096774194 4.2258064516129
MEDIAN 2 4
MODE 2 6
RANGE 4 5
The table above shows the results of finding the mean, median, mode, and range of the data
collected from the second question (How much of your free time is used to binge-watch?) and
third question (How long do you usually binge-watch a day during the break?) According to the
mean of question 2, on average college students use 1.8 hours (rounded off from
1.8387096774194) of their free time to binge-watch. The median shows that the student in the
middle uses 2 hours at most for binge-watching during their free time. Similarly, the mode
indicates that most college students only choose to use 1-2 hours of their free time to binge-watch,
while the range calculated is 4.
For the third question, it can be inferred that on average college students use 4.2 hours on
binge-watching when they have no academic responsibilities. The median shows that the student
in the middle uses an estimate of 4 hours to binge-watch per day during the break. Meanwhile, the
mode presents that most college students use 6 (or more) hours for binge-watching, while the range
calculated is 5.

Statistical Approach 2: Standard Deviation

Question 2 Question 3
STANDARD DEVIATION 1.0032206202542 1.7456551285855
The table above illustrates the results of finding the standard deviation from the second and
third question. Based on the table, both questions have very similar standard deviations even when
the mean from both questions slightly differ. This means that most college students spend time
binge-watching during breaks than they do when they have academic responsibilities.
IV. Conclusion
In conclusion, most college students only get 3 to 4 hours of free time in a day when they
have class, and they only use around 1 to 2 hours of that time to binge-watch. This answers the
research question based on the results gathered from the 31 college students that answered the
survey. Additionally, when college students are on break, most of them spend about 5 or more
hours binge-watching, which is a lot more time compared to when their classes are in session.

As a Film and Television major, this research has been eye opening in terms of how college
students value the act of rapidly consuming media, specifically television shows. Even with a
limited amount of time, they still make time to be able to watch a show they are interested in. With
the first question, I was able to see how much free time the students have in a day to get a general
idea of how much time could be spent on binge-watching. In the second question, I was able to
see how much of the free time was actually spent on the activity. With this, I was able infer that
most students use 1 to 2 hours to watch, which can span up to 2-3 episodes depending on its length.
In the last question, I was able to see how often the students binge-watch when classes are not in
session, and the numbers drastically change since most of them use 5 or more hours to binge-
watch.

Overall, the results of the study merely reflect the answers of 31 students who binge-watch
daily. There are obvious limitations to this research, and if it would be taken further, it should have
a larger sample size, and a more reliable sampling method. Since the age range of college students
also vary, I would have chosen a more specific age range so the results won’t be too general. If
given the chance, I would include more variables in the research to be able to use more statistical
approaches to create an in depth study on the behaviors of binge-watching.