Social Media Experiments And Their Influence

In an age where digital platforms shape not only what we see but also how we behave, the experimentation of human responses online has quietly morphed into one of the most intriguing aspects of social media.

Social Media Experiments

One vivid example is the recent viral series by Nikalie Monroe on TikTok, in which she staged a scenario. She was calling dozens of churches and religious centres, under the guise of being a struggling mother seeking baby formula.

To observe whether they would offer help. This experiment strikes at the heart of how social media experiments influence not only behaviour but also our perception of institutions, ethics and community.

Social media thrives on experiment-like formats: the influencer tries something, records the result, posts it, viewers react, and then the cycle loops.

These “social experiments†tap into our curiosity. “What will this person do?†“What will they get away with?†“How will people respond?†And they allow creators to quantify or dramatize a hypothesis in a live, public setting.

The Nikalie Monroe example followed those contours. She assumed a role, asked for a single can of baby formula, and captured the responses from churches. According to reports, she posted over 40 videos, and out of roughly 43 attempts, only nine churches offered to help while thirty-plus refused.

Why does this matter? Because when experiments are conducted on social media, the results can have a ripple effect far beyond the immediate content. First, they influence behaviour.

How Do Viewers Respond

Viewers may become more likely to engage in similar experiments, mimic the style of confrontation or social challenge. And thereby alter how they interact with institutions or charities—sometimes in an adversarial manner.

Second, they shape perceptions. The Monroe series portrays many churches as unwilling to help strangers, which may erode trust or prompt criticism of institutions that are traditionally regarded as charitable.

Third, they influence norms and values. By exposing or airing what the creator frames as moral failure (or success). These experiments nudge audiences to reconsider what kindness, community, and help-giving should look like in the digital era.

A comparison is instructive. Imagine a traditional social psychology experiment in a lab, where participants are asked to respond to a scenario under controlled conditions. In contrast, social media experiments unfold in a partly controlled, partly chaotic public space.

There’s the algorithm, the audience, the knowledge of the camera, and the performative dimension. This makes the “experiment†both more real (because it involves real lives and real responses) and less clean (because context, bias, and editing all intervene).

In Nikalie’s case, she is not only testing churches but also testing the public’s attention. As well as the viral mechanics of TikTok, and the moral branding of religious organizations simultaneously.

What Is The Result

Moreover, these kinds of experiments influence how we perceive charity, community, and institutions in the digital age. The instance where a mosque or Islamic centre reportedly responded more readily than several Christian churches (as noted in the Reddit discussion).

Sparks a broader conversation about religious identity, community outreach, and the expectations placed on charitable institutions. Viewers are prompted to ask: Are churches doing enough? Are they accessible to non-members? Does the context of being a cold-call stranger change the dynamic of help? Such questions may not have been widespread without the social-experiment format.

However, there are caveats. The experiment is not perfect. Because it’s mediated through social media—edited, selective, meant to go viral. The results may be skewed. Some churches point out that many calls to aid agencies are from non-members, unvetted, or part of cold-call scams.

Which means their refusal may be more about procedure than compassion. Yet the power of the experiment lies less in its rigorous scientific validity. And more in the conversation it provokes among viewers and institutions.

In sum, social media experiments like the one led by Nikalie Monroe demonstrate how the digital age turns real-life interactions into data, spectacle, and moral commentary. They influence us by pressing us to watch, judge, partake—and sometimes mimic.

They compel institutions to confront their public image in real-time. And they shift how we think about help, community and responsibility when every act can be recorded, streamed and dissected. The line between a genuine outreach and a digital performance is blurrier than ever—and that in itself is part of the influence of social media’s social experiments.

Photo Credits: Social Media, TikTok, Instagram and Facebook