Life-oriented Dependency of Short-Video Platform: Unconscious Behavior, Algorithmic Intimacy and Ecosystem Integration

Abstract

As short-video platforms evolve from entertainment tool to super app which integrating content consumption, social interaction and life services, their media-oriented effects are deepening increasingly. This study aims to deeply explore how short-video platforms can transcend their initial entertainment functions through their inherent composite functional collaboration mechanisms. By integrating online shopping, local group buying and other life service functions, they can build a composite functional ecosystem, thereby inducing users to develop a deep dependency. Through semi-structured interviews with 12 Chinese college students, this study identified three core themes of dependency experience: (1) Unconscious experiences from entertainment to consumption; (2) Emotional dependency shaped by algorithms; (3) The integration of the platform ecosystem with daily life. This study proposes the concept of "life-oriented dependency" in combination with the media system dependency theory, revealing that the platform creates a deep dependency experience for users through functional collaboration rather than a single function, and provides theoretical inspiration for understanding new media dependency.