Young users' social media addiction: causes, consequences and preventions

Abstract

PurposeSocial media addiction has been an ongoing topic of debate for platform developers, well-being and mental health experts. There is a limited understanding of the factors leading to the addiction of young social media users, the consequences of experiencing addiction, and the measures/mechanisms used by parents and platform providers to limit/prevent problematic social media use amongst young users. This systematic review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the literature concerning these issues.Design/methodology/approachThe Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews (PRISMA) protocol was used to evaluate and present the results. A total of 45 studies were screened and independently reviewed against predetermined criteria for eligibility.FindingsThe results revealed four categories of young users' addiction to social media networks (social, technological, behavioural and mental). Several prevention approaches directed at parents and platform providers were discussed.Originality/valueThis study offers important insights for health policy makers, platform providers, parents and researchers on designing interventions addressing social media addiction amongst young users. It also provides an in-depth understanding of the conceptualization of social media addiction and suggestions on possible actions to prevent it.

Does Thin-Ideal Internalization Increase Adolescent Girls’ Problematic Social Media Use? The Role of Selfie-Related Behaviors and Friendship Quality

“…Studies show that PSMU is associated with poor academic and work performance (Acar et al, 2022;Malak et al, 2022), problematic family relationships (Wartberg et al, 2020), body image disturbance (Imperatori et al, 2022), increased eating and sleep disorder symptoms (Muzi et al, 2021;Tereshchenko et al, 2021), substance abuse (Buja et al, 2018), anxiety and depression (Meshi & Ellithorpe, 2021). In particular, the above-mentioned issues occur frequently in adolescents, who are more vulnerable to problematic behaviors due to oversharing and spending too much time on social media than any other age group (Akakandelwa & Walubita, 2018;Al-Samarraie et al, 2022;Alzougool & Wishah, 2019). Therefore, it is vital to investigate and identify the factors influencing PSMU.…”

“…Based on the cognitive-behavioral model of generalized problematic Internet use (Caplan, 2010; Meshi & Ellithorpe, 2021; Savci et al, 2022), problematic social media use (PSMU) is defined as “a problematic behavior with excessive and compulsive use of social media, accompanied by a preference for online social interaction, a motivation for mood regulation, and negative affects to life.” Studies show that PSMU is associated with poor academic and work performance (Acar et al, 2022; Malak et al, 2022), problematic family relationships (Wartberg et al, 2020), body image disturbance (Imperatori et al, 2022), increased eating and sleep disorder symptoms (Muzi et al, 2021; Tereshchenko et al, 2021), substance abuse (Buja et al, 2018), anxiety and depression (Meshi & Ellithorpe, 2021). In particular, the above-mentioned issues occur frequently in adolescents, who are more vulnerable to problematic behaviors due to oversharing and spending too much time on social media than any other age group (Akakandelwa & Walubita, 2018; Al-Samarraie et al, 2022; Alzougool & Wishah, 2019). Therefore, it is vital to investigate and identify the factors influencing PSMU.…”

“…Selfie-related behaviors are likely to act as triggers for PSMU. Social media offers adolescent users multiple options to edit and share their selfies, giving them more control and confidence over what they share (Al-Samarraie et al, 2022). Furthermore, the feedback from the audience following selfie-sharing is abundant, including “likes” and complimentary appraisals (Dumas et al, 2017; Hong et al, 2019).…”

“…This is supported by a controlled field experiment, which showed that checking behaviors could be reinforced by informational rewards that were very quickly accessible (Oulasvirta et al, 2012). In this case, adolescents are likely to shift from normal social media use to PSMU, spending an increasing amount of time thereon (Al-Samarraie et al, 2022). Research showed that daily time spent on social media has been attributed to the increase of PSMU among adolescents and youth, as their habit of constantly checking social media could result in automatic use and produce problematic symptoms (Babalola et al, 2017; Hou et al, 2019; Osatuyi & Turel, 2018).…”

Research on the influencing factors of excessive behavior of Bilibili video platform

“…Therefore, this paper based on uses and satisfactions theory and social cognitive theory, develop a questionnaire to collect data, supplement existing theories, and propose corresponding interventions.Social media is a platform to establish social networks or social relationships, such as Bilibili video platform. With the exponential growth of social media overuse, most studies in recent years have focused on the negative effects of overuse behaviors, such as continued use beyond the normal usage time, leading to threats to mental and physical health, reduced self-control, and even becoming a compulsive or addictive use behavior [1]. Overuse is manifested as an addiction to technology, including excessive interaction with IT under psychological dependence.…”