Instagram is now testing chronological feeds amid concerns that the platform’s algorithm-driven approach can serve up content that’s bad for teenagers’ mental health.
Instagram Head Adam Mosseri previewed the upcoming change in a Wednesday Instagram video. The chronological feed will appear alongside the current algorithm-driven Instagram experience, dubbed Home. Here’s how it’ll work:
- The Home feed will continue serving up content that Instagram thinks you’ll like.
- A second feed, called Following, focuses on showing you a chronological list of posts from the accounts you follow.
- A third feed, dubbed Favorites, will serve up posts strictly from accounts you’ve favorited.
“Now these tests are already out or going out in the next couple of weeks,” Mosseri added. The platform then plans on officially launching the new feeds sometime during the first half of 2022.
Mosseri mentioned that the platform was working on a chronological feed during a December appearance before Congress, when lawmakers questioned if Instagram’s algorithms “manipulate” user behavior.
That came after The Wall Street Journal reported that Instagram was fully aware its algorithm-driven approach has been toxic to the mental health of teenage girls. This is because the same algorithms can promote content about perfect bodies, which can lead to stress, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts among affected teens, according to Instagram’s own internal research.
Frances Haugen, the whistleblower behind the Journal’s reporting, has since called on Facebook and Instagram to switch to chronological feeds, claiming the company’s algorithms can often push extreme, divisive content to keep users hooked.
Instagram’s parent company, Meta, has denied the accusations. But on Wednesday, Mosseri said the new chronological feeds promise to give users more control over what content appears on their accounts.
“It’s important to me that people feel good about the time they spend in the app. And I think giving people ways to shape Instagram into what’s best for them is one of the best ways to pursue that,” he said.
Nevertheless, the platform isn’t abandoning algorithms entirely, since the Home feed will still feature prominently on the platform. As for Facebook, you can see a chronological order of posts in your News Feed by clicking the See More in the left menu of the News Feed and then clicking Most Recent. However, it isn’t a permanent change.
