The authors warn that this combination could make them more vulnerable to disinformation.
The findings of the Between Fact and Feed report point to a widespread sense of powerlessness.
Some 69 percent of those questioned said the world was unfair, 68 percent believed that people with money and public visibility had the greatest influence over events, and 60 percent felt that decisions affecting them were made without consulting them.
Only 44 percent thought they had a real say in the country's future.
Trust was low across the board.
Just 23 percent said most people could be trusted, while 49 percent disagreed.
Fifty-five percent) said they did not automatically trust experts, scientists or institutions, and 46 percent believed the media or government concealed important information.
Only 14 percent trusted politicians, compared with 65 percent for scientists.
Scrolling for news, skipping the checks
Social media was the main source of news for 55 percent of those questioned, although 67 percent said they used it mainly for entertainment and 56 percent encountered news by chance while scrolling.
The most widely used platforms were also considered the least reliable.
The report found that young people spent almost five hours a day looking at screens.
Many said they checked information they encountered online: 60 percent looked at other users' comments, while 48 percent said they verified information themselves.
But the authors said there was a gap between what young people claimed to do and what they actually did.
Half of young people admit they give up on fact-checking out of tiredness, and 35 percent skip verifying content that "sounds logical."
Only 20 percent reported knowing about and using verification tools, while 34 percent based their judgements on the number of comments and likes.
One in four said they had published content in the heat of the moment, before checking it, and 14 percent admitted sharing something that later turned out to be false.
Anna Buchner, one of the report's authors, told Poland's PAP news agency that reliance on likes and comments was "alarming."
Artificially boosted engagement and coordinated comments can create a false impression of consensus, making a message appear more credible, she said.
Open to conspiracy theories
The survey also found that 64 percent of young people encountered conspiracy-related content at least once a month, while one in four saw it daily.
Half said such narratives might contain some truth.
Buchner said this did not mean half of those surveyed believed every conspiracy theory, but suggested they were open to the possibility that some may have some basis in fact.
Konrad Ciesiołkiewicz, head of the Centre for Information Society Analysis at Korczak University in Warsaw, said young people's susceptibility to such content could be linked to their stage of development and their immersion in social media, messaging services and AI apps.
These platforms are shaped by what he described as algorithmic radicalisation.
Algorithms repeatedly expose young people to content that is often extreme or violent, he said, describing them as "a generation tired and burnt out by information."
He also highlighted attitudes towards democracy.
Although more than 40 percent of those surveyed said they valued democracy, 36 percent believed a strong, charismatic leader would be preferable to democratically elected representatives.
The report Between Fact and Feed was prepared by Korczak University and research firm Empowermind and presented in the upper house of Poland's parliament on Monday.
It is based on an anonymous online survey of 1,020 respondents aged 16 to 25, described as representative of young people across Poland.
(ał/gs)
Source: PAP