Gaming and Social Media Addiction in University Students: Sex Differences, Suitability of Symptoms, and Association With Psychosocial Difficulties

Who is more inclined to reduce social media addictive tendency behaviors? Explanations based on sex and proactive personality

This study examines individual differences between the relationship between social media addiction tendencies and the intention to reduce social media use from the perspectives of sex and proactive personality. Data from 365 college students' social media users measured twice (two weeks apart) were empirically examined. The results showed that (1) social media addiction tendencies significantly and positively predicted the intention to reduce social media use; (2) the predictive effect was more significant in male students compared to female students; (3) the positive predictive influence of social media addiction tendencies on the intention to reduce social media use was significantly moderated by proactive personality, manifesting prominently in individuals possessing high levels of proactive personality, yet not in those with low levels of proactive personality. These results can help to increase the motivation of college students to reduce social media addictive tendency behaviors and further promote the improvement of social media addictive tendency behaviors.

Scrolling for fun or to cope? Associations between social media motives and social media disorder symptoms in adolescents and young adults

Introduction

Although not yet recognized as an official disorder, Social Media Disorder (SMD) has recently received considerable interest in the research. However, relatively little is known about underlying motives for social media use and to what extent motives show differential associations with SMD symptom severity and SMD diagnosis. The overall aim of the present study was therefore to examine motives for social media use in relation to (1) which motives are most common, (2) associations between motives and both SMD symptom severity and SMD diagnosis, and (3) the effects of sex and age.

Methods

Data were collected through a digital survey (n = 1820) and included both high school students (n = 924) and university students (n = 896). Six different motives were assessed, and SMD was measured in relation to both Heavy Involvement and Negative Consequences of social media use.

Results

The results showed that the most common social media use motives were Entertainment, Social Maintenance, and Information and Skills. However, it was the three least common motives - Social Compensation, Self-status, and Escape - that were most strongly associated with SMD symptom severity and SMD diagnosis. These three motives explained as much as 42% of the variance in negative consequences of social media use. Only a few small effects of sex or age were found.

Discussion

Some social media use motives are much more strongly associated with SMD than others are. This could indicate that prevention and intervention programs should target these motives specifically, rather than focusing on social media use in general.

Longitudinal associations between digital media use and ADHD symptoms in children and adolescents: a systematic literature review

Previous reviews have often shown a link between digital media ADHD symptom levels. However, longitudinal studies are needed to find stronger evidence of a causal effect as well as to determine the direction of effects. The aim of the present review (PROSPERO CRD42021262695) was therefore to provide a systematic review of studies meeting the following inclusion criteria: (1) include longitudinal data investigating associations between digital media (i.e., gaming and social media) and later ADHD symptoms or vice versa, (2) be published within the past 10 years (i.e., 2011 until June 2021), (3) be published in a peer-reviewed journal in English, and (4) include children or adolescents (age 0-17 years). After a systematic search in the Web of Science and PsycInfo databases, we included 28 studies, all with adequate or high quality. Results showed support for reciprocal associations between digital media and ADHD symptoms, with associations being more consistent for problematic use of digital media than for screen time. Thus, children with ADHD symptoms appear more vulnerable to developing high or problematic use of digital media (i.e., selection effects), and digital media also have effects on later ADHD symptom levels, either because of specific characteristics of digital media or because of indirect effects on, for example, sleep and social relations (i.e., media effects). However, it should be emphasized that further studies investigating potential moderators and mediators are needed if we are to better understand the complex associations between digital media and ADHD symptom levels.

Screen time and addictive use of gaming and social media in relation to health outcomes

Introduction

This study examined associations between screen time and addictive use (i.e., heavy involvement and negative consequences) of gaming and social media, and their independent effects on health outcomes.

Methods

Survey data were collected from 2,265 participants (mean age = 21.57). Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) and Social Media Disorder (SMD) were measured with the Gaming and Social Media Questionnaire (GSMQ-9), with separate measures for heavy involvement and negative consequences. Screen time was measured by weekly hours of gaming and social media. Assessed health outcomes were psychological problems, low self-concept, social problems, sleep problems, and sleep time.

Results

Screen time and addictive use were significantly associated for both gaming and social media, with associations being stronger for symptoms of heavy involvement compared to symptoms of negative consequences. However, despite significant associations, a substantial proportion of the participants with a high screen time did not meet any or just one symptom of addiction. More importantly, it was primarily negative consequences that had independent effects on health outcomes, except for sleep. High levels of heavy involvement in gaming, were even related to lower, not higher, levels of psychological problems.

Conclusion

The present findings study show that screen time is a poor indicator of addictive use of gaming and social media. Given that it was primarily negative consequences of gaming or social media that had effects on health outcomes, our study also emphasizes the need to distinguish between different types of addictive use and to further examine the diagnostic validity of the nine IGD symptom criteria.

Bored with boredom? Trait boredom predicts internet addiction through the mediating role of attentional bias toward social networks

Internet addiction is an emerging issue, impacting people's psychosocial functioning and well-being. However, the prevalence and the mechanisms underlying internet misuse are largely unknown. As with other behavioral addiction disorders, the increase and persistence of internet addiction may be favored by negative affect such as boredom. In this study, we examined the role of boredom susceptibility, as a personality trait, in predicting the risk of internet addiction. Furthermore, we analyzed the attentional mechanisms that may exacerbate dysfunctional internet behaviors. Specifically, we assessed the mediating role of attentional bias toward social media cues on the relation between boredom susceptibility and internet addiction. Sixty-nine young adults were administered a dot-probe task assessing internet-related attentional bias (AB) and questionnaires measuring internet addiction (IAT) and boredom susceptibility (BS-BSSS). Correlation and t-test analyses confirmed that the tendency to experience boredom and selective attention toward social network information was related to internet addiction. Furthermore, the mediation model indicated that AB fully explains the link between BS-BSSS and IAT. The study highlighted the crucial role of selective attentional processing behind internet addiction. The current results are useful for both researchers and clinicians as they suggest that intervention programs for internet addiction should include strategies to cope with dysfunctional cognitive processes.

The Relationship between Social Media and the Increase in Mental Health Problems

Social media has become an indispensable aspect of young people's digital interactions, as they use it mostly for entertainment and communication purposes. Consequently, it has the potential to have both positive and negative effects on them. Deterioration in mental health is one of the side effects stemming from social media overuse. This study investigates the relationship between social media and the increase in mental health problems in Saudi Arabia. The population considered for analysis includes young people from Saudi Arabia, with a sample size of 385. A closed-ended survey questionnaire was used to collect data on different social media features and criteria. Using the Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP), the researcher analyzed data to compare the effect of different social media features on mental health. The social media features included in this paper are private chats and calls, group chats and calls, browsing posts, games, media sharing, adverts, likes/comments/followers, and pages. The researcher adopted entertainment, information, social interaction, privacy, esteem, and communication as the criteria in the AHP process. Among these criteria, the study found that entertainment was the most significant, while privacy was the least significant. Findings suggested that likes, comments, and followers were the biggest contributors to poor mental health (total utility = 56.24). The least effective feature was 'games' (total utility = 2.56). The researcher recommends that social media users be cautious when interacting with social media features, especially likes, comments, followers, media, and posts, because of their significant effect on mental health.

Examining the Indirect Effect of Online Gaming on Depression via Sleep Inequality and Anxiety-A Serial and Parallel Mediation Analysis

Stress-related disorders are highly prevalent among first-year college students. Gaming disorder (GD) is an emerging disorder linked to physical and psychological consequences. We aimed to investigate the mechanism linking GD with anxiety, depression, and sleep disorders among first-year undergraduate students. Four hundred fifty-seven participants were recruited, and the survey included the Internet Gaming Disorder Scale Short-Form (IGDS9-SF), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Our results showed that female students scored significantly higher than males in anxiety and depression. Furthermore, we found that depression is positively and strongly correlated to anxiety, and both are moderately associated with sleep quality. Gaming is positively related to depression, anxiety, and sleep quality. Interestingly, the health sciences tracks showed lower sleep quality than undergraduates from other tracks. There was a 64% variance in depression explained by many predictors, including anxiety, sleep quality, gaming, painkiller use, and gender. In addition, the mediation models showed that the association between gaming and depression is mediated indirectly by sleep quality, and sleep quality may be mediated directly by anxiety. The first year in college occurs at a critical developmental and professional stage, and our results highlight the need to establish support programs and conduct mental health educational workshops.