Journal of Media Studies, Vol 35, No 2 (2020)

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Social Media Usage and Psychological Well-Being of College Teens in Pakistan: A Correlational Study

Sahifa Mukhtar

Abstract


Social media has become part and parcel of today's youth life and it has altogether changed the ways people interact with each other. There is ample evidence in research suggesting impact of social media on different facets of physical, psychological and mental health of the users (Pantic, 2014; Braynt, 2018; O'Reilly et al., 2018; Kennedy, 2019; Keles, McCrae, & Grealish, 2019). The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between social media usage and eudaimonic well-being. The study was quantitative in nature and the data was collected by opting cross-sectional survey research method. Social media usage was analyzed by adapting Facebook intensity scale and eudaimonic well-being was assessed through Ryff's scale (1989) of psychological well-being. It was revealed that respondents of the study are active users of social media and primarily they are using social media more for self-projection, socialization and escape. Social media usage intensity showed a positive significant correlation with all six dimensions of psychological well-being. A greater strength of effects and relationship was found with personal growth and autonomy respectively. It was also found that males in the study possessed more positive psychological well-being. Similarly the males showed more significantly positive relations with others and they scored higher in self-acceptance. It is concluded that social media usage is predominantly contributing in increasing the psychological well-being of teenagers in Pakistan in a positive direction. 


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