Coping With Boredom

<p>Boredom has gone from something we avoid to something we curate – a new metric in the self‑care economy to measure ourselves by. From &#39;rawdogging boredom&#39; challenges to the obsession with performing “slow creativity,” we’re told stillness is a portal to a better, more imaginative self. But the research is messy, and our lived experiences even more so. </p><p>This week, Alice Griffin and Jannah Anderson dig into the neuroscience of boredom, the rise of the serial hobbyist, the existential itches that keep us chasing novelty, and the cultural urge to make boredom meaningful – even when the moments in between fail to deliver us anything profound.</p><p>☆ Are you a creative looking for support? Visit the <a href="https://supportact.org.au/creative-industries/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">⁠Support Act Creative Industries Hub⁠</a> or call the Support Act Wellbeing Helpline on 1800 959 500 for a free and confidential chat (and remember, you don&#39;t have to be in crisis to call). Sometimes you just need to talk to someone who actually gets it and can hear you out. ☆</p><p>Want to support our show? We&#39;d be so grateful if you hit &#39;follow&#39; or left us a 5-star review so we can bring you more Coping content.</p><p>Plus, you can follow along with us on<a href="https://www.instagram.com/copingwithus/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a>,<a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@copingwithus" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">⁠⁠ ⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a>, and<a href="https://au.pinterest.com/copingwithus/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">⁠⁠ ⁠Pinterest⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a>. Find out more about what we&#39;re up to (and how you can get involved) at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠<a href="http://copinginc.com/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠copinginc.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠</a>⁠⁠⁠⁠.</p><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/01/style/boredom-online-trend-influencers-tiktok.html" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">They Want To Influence You To Do… Nothing</a> by Alexander Nazaryan, The New York Times</p><p><a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26979438/" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Boredom, Sustained Attention and The Default Mode Network</a> by James Danckert and Colleen Merrifield</p><p><a href="https://hbr.org/2025/08/you-need-to-be-bored-heres-why" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">You Need To Be Bored, Here’s Why</a> by Arthur Brooks, Harvard Business Review</p><p><a href="https://bera-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/rev3.3470" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">The Association Between Boredom And Creativity In Educational Contexts’</a> by Anke Zeißig, Julia Kansok-Dusche, Saskia M. Fischer, Julia Moeller, Ludwig Bilz</p><p><a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt5vm449" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Boredom, A Lively History</a> by Peter Toohey</p><p><a href="https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1250830" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">Just Think: The Challenges Of The Disengaged Mind</a> by Timothy D. Wilson, David A. Reinhard, Erin C. Westgate, Daniel T. Gilbert, Nicole Ellerbeck, Cheryl Hahn, Casey L. Brown, and Adi Shaked in Science</p><p><a href="https://www.newyorker.com/culture/annals-of-inquiry/what-does-boredom-do-to-us-and-for-us" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">What Does Boredom Do To Us And For Us?</a> by Margaret Talbot, The New Yorker</p><p><a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/quit-romanticizing-boredom-motherhood-anna-north.html" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">⁠Quit Romanticising Boredom⁠</a> by Anna North, The Cut</p>