The Protective Role of Resilience in the Development of Social Media Addiction in Tertiary Students and Psychometric Properties of the Slovenian Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS)

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Oct 13;19(20):13178. doi: 10.3390/ijerph192013178.

Abstract

With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, social media became one of the most utilized sources of information relating to the disease. With the increased reliance on social media, the risk of excessive use and the development of social media addiction emerges. The aim of the present study was to explore the psychometric properties of the Slovenian version of the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale, and to explore how psychological resilience affects social media addiction symptoms directly and indirectly through symptoms of depression, anxiety and mental distress. A large online cross-sectional study was conducted in March 2021 among Slovenian tertiary students (N = 4868). The results showed the high reliability, unidimensionality and criterion validity of the Slovenian Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale. The proposed structural model fit the data well and showed a significant direct positive effect of depression and stress on social media addiction. Moreover, the majority of the negative effects of psychological resilience on social media addiction (87.2%) were indirect, through depression and stress symptoms, whereas resilience had a significantly smaller impact on social media addiction by reducing anxiety symptoms. The overall prevalence of social media addiction symptoms was 4.6%, with females exhibiting higher proportions than men. Additionally, female social media users reported a complete absence of social media addiction symptoms less often compared to males. Future research should further explore the mechanisms behind social media addiction, in order to gain a better understanding of the apparently different risk levels for both genders.

Keywords: Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS); COVID-19; behavioral addictions; resilience; social media addiction; validation.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Behavior, Addictive* / psychology
  • COVID-19*
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Internet Addiction Disorder / epidemiology
  • Male
  • Pandemics
  • Psychometrics
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Social Media*
  • Students

Grants and funding

This publication arose from the project “Measures in the field of COVID-19 spread management with a focus on vulnerable populations”. This research was co-financed by the Republic of Slovenia and the European Union under the European Social Fund, within the framework of the EU response to the COVID-19 pandemic (Grant No. C2711-21-053701). The content of this paper represents the views of the authors only and is their sole responsibility; it cannot be considered to reflect the views of the European Commission or any other body of the European Union. The European Commission does not accept any responsibility for the use that may be made of the information it contains.