Abstract
Background. The addiction to social networks poses serious risks to the lives and well-being of adolescents. This study aimed to create a model of social media addiction that takes into account family dynamics, positive development, and psychological distress, with cognitive emotion regulation strategies acting as mediators among adolescents.
Methods. This descriptive-correlational study included adolescents aged 15-18 years during the 2022–2023 educational year in Tabriz schools. Multi-stage cluster sampling was used to select the adolescents. Data were collected using the social network addiction scale (SNAS), the cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire (CERQ), the depression, anxiety, and stress scale (DASS), the positive youth development-via strengths family scale (PYD-VSF), and the McMaster family assessment device (FAD). Pearson correlation and structural equation modeling (SEM) analyses were conducted using SPSS and LISREL software.
Results. A strong positive correlation was found between positive youth development and effective emotion regulation strategies. Conversely, there was a notable negative correlation between dysfunctional family dynamics and effective emotion regulation strategies. Psychological distress was directly linked to ineffective emotion regulation strategies. Additionally, a significant direct connection was identified between psychological distress and social media addiction. There was also a notable relationship between dysfunctional family dynamics and social media addiction. The results from the structural equation modeling indicated a strong fit for the proposed model. Specifically, healthy family dynamics were positively correlated with effective cognitive emotion regulation strategies (t = 2.44, γ = 0.17), while dysfunctional family dynamics showed a negative correlation with these strategies (t = -4.74, γ = -0.43). In conclusion, psychological distress and dysfunctional family dynamics are predictors of social media addiction, with cognitive emotion regulation strategies serving as a mediating factor. Improving emotional self-regulation through better family dynamics and addressing psychological distress can help safeguard adolescents from addiction to the Internet and social media.
Conclusion. Psychological distress and unhealthy family functioning predict social media addiction, mediated by cognitive emotion regulation strategies. Enhancing emotional self-regulation through family functioning and addressing psychological distress can protect adolescents from Internet and social media addiction.
Extended Abstract
Background
Adolescence, especially between the ages of 14 and 18, is a critical and vulnerable period characterized by traits such as thrill-seeking, novelty-seeking, and a desire for independence. Due to a lack of effective management and proper understanding from families and society, these characteristics can expose adolescents to psychological and social harm. The rise and spread of the Internet and social media networks have exacerbated these risks, as these platforms, with their appealing and multi-sensory features, attract adolescents, leading them to spend a significant portion of their time in these spaces. This dependency can cause issues in their daily lives and disrupt their psychological balance. Addiction to the Internet and social media is a serious behavioral problem that can lead to physical, psychological, academic, and professional issues. Research indicates that addiction to these platforms, particularly among adolescents aged 15-19, is associated with increased levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. Various factors, including family functioning, psychological distress, and emotion regulation, play a role in the formation of this addiction. To mitigate these risks, it is essential to scientifically understand and manage the factors contributing to Internet and social media addiction. This management can focus on enhancing positive adolescent development, improving family functioning, and reducing psychological distress to effectively prevent and treat social media addiction.MethodsThis descriptive-correlational study included adolescents aged 15-18 years during the 2022–2023 educational year in Tabriz schools. This study assessed the relationships between family functioning, positive youth development, and psychological distress, focusing on the role of cognitive emotion regulation strategies as a mediating variable in reducing social media addiction. The study's population included 85,000 students. Of this amount, 338 students were randomly selected using the Tabachnick and Fidell formula and multi-stage cluster sampling.The data collection tools included the social network addiction scale (SNAS), the cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire (CERQ), the psychological distress scale (DASS-21), the positive youth development scale (PYD-VSF), and the McMaster family assessment device (FAD). Each tool was designed to measure various psychological and social dimensions and demonstrated adequate reliability and validity. Data were collected through questionnaires completed by volunteer students. Data analysis employed descriptive statistics such as mean, frequency, standard deviation, and percentage, as well as inferential statistics using structural equation modeling (SEM) with SPSS (version 22) and LISREL software. ResultsThe average age of the 338 participants in the study was 16.88 years, with the majority (242) being male. The results showed a significant negative correlation between positive cognitive emotion regulation strategies and social media addiction (r = -0.22, P< 0.01). Furthermore, social media addiction had the strongest association with refocusing on planning (r = -0.30, P<0.01) and the weakest association with acceptance (r = 0.11, P<0.01). Positive youth development was directly and significantly related to positive cognitive emotion regulation strategies (r = 0.13, P<0.01). In addition, positive youth development had the strongest association with refocusing on planning and positive reappraisal (r = 0.17, P<0.01) and the weakest association with acceptance (r = -0.02, P< 0.05). A significant positive correlation was found between psychological distress and negative cognitive emotion regulation strategies (r = 0.30, P< 0.01). Additionally, psychological distress had the strongest association with catastrophizing (r = 0.33, P< 0.05) and the weakest association with self-blame (r = -0.18, P< 0.01). There was also a significant positive relationship between psychological distress and social media addiction (r = 0.23, P< 0.01), indicating a notable negative statistical relationship. Among the subscales, psychological distress had the highest correlation with salience (r = 0.22, P< 0.01) and the lowest correlation with conflict (r = 0.16, P< 0.01). A significant negative correlation was observed between negative family functioning and positive cognitive emotion regulation strategies (r = -0.27, P<0.05). In addition, negative family functioning had the strongest association with refocusing on planning (r = -0.34, P<0.01) and the weakest association with acceptance (r = -0.14, P<0.01). Additionally, a significant positive relationship was found between negative family functioning and social media addiction (r = 0.60, P<0.01). It was also found that negative family functioning had the strongest correlation with conflict (r = 0.60, P< 0.01) and the weakest correlation with mood modification (r = 0.38, P< 0.01).The SEM results showed that positive family functioning was significantly related to positive cognitive emotion regulation strategies (t=2.44, γ = 0.17). Negative family functioning was significantly associated with positive cognitive emotion regulation strategies (t= -4.74, γ = -0.43), social media addiction (t =8.99, γ =0.50), and negative cognitive emotion regulation strategies (t= 2.37, γ=0.14). Positive youth development was significantly related to positive cognitive emotion regulation strategies (t=2.10, γ=0.14). Psychological distress was significantly associated with positive cognitive emotion regulation strategies (t = -2.92, γ = -0.19), social media addiction (t=2.37, γ=0.03), and negative cognitive emotion regulation strategies (t =6.28, γ =0.44). Social media addiction had a significant association with both positive (t = -2.96, β = -0.16) and negative cognitive emotion regulation strategies (t = 2.44, β = 0.13).ConclusionIn this research, a structural model was created based on the variables analyzed. The evaluation of the model's goodness-of-fit indices revealed that the comparative fit index (CFI) demonstrated an excellent fit, while the root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA), goodness of fit index (GFI), adjusted goodness of fit index (AGFI), and root mean square residual (RMSR) also indicated a favorable fit for the proposed model. As a result, the findings suggest that structural models can be effectively utilized to explore the relationships among various factors associated with social media addiction in adolescents, which can help in identifying, analyzing, and interpreting the relationships of predictive variables in this context. This understanding can guide the development of prevention and intervention strategies for adolescent social media addiction. The model indicates that family dysfunction significantly influences the use of positive cognitive emotion regulation strategies and social media addiction. Furthermore, there is a notable connection between social media addiction and both positive and negative cognitive emotion regulation strategies. Thus, family dynamics and psychological distress affect social media addiction through emotion regulation strategies, which are crucial in this issue.