Vines, Hannah2026-02-262026-02-262026-02-262025https://hdl.handle.net/10012/22956Generation Z (Gen Z), often described as the “digital generation,” is the first cohort to experience childhood and adolescence extensively mediated by digital technologies. This has coincided with a widespread retreat from analog to digital spaces, frequently described as “digital escapism.” Existing sociological and psychological literature tends to explain this shift through sociopolitical stressors, individual pathology, or engineered addiction (Haidt, 2024; Jouhki et al., 2022; Kardefelt-Winther, 2014). This paper offers an alternative interpretation by theorizing digital escapism as a cultural phenomenon shaped by shared narratives, symbols, and meaning-making practices. Drawing on the strong program in cultural sociology (Alexander, 2003), this paper argues that contemporary narratives of techno-utopianism and posthumanism provide key symbolic frameworks through which Gen Z interprets their relationship with technology. These narratives idealize technological mediation, promote intimate human-computer interaction, and encourage transcendence of embodied and social limitations. Rather than viewing Gen Z’s digital retreat as a novel response to technological change, this paper situates their practices and discourse within broader cultural patterns that have roots in enduring historical traditions, challenging narratives of technological determinism. By foregrounding culture and meaning, this paper contributes to digital sociology by demonstrating how technological practices are embedded within symbolic systems that precede and exceed individual choice or technological design. The analysis shows that digital escapism is not simply a reaction to technological affordances, but a culturally mediated response shaped by powerful collective imaginaries. The paper concludes by suggesting that understanding digital engagement through cultural narratives transcends psychological or materialistic explanations, addressing a critical gap in the literature for analyzing the social implications of digital technologies and the evolving relationship between technology and contemporary social life.enPosthumanismRomanticismTechno-UtopianismCultural sociologyBachelor Thesis