Psychosocial Correlates of Excessive Social Media Use in a Hispanic College Sample

Abstract

Excessive social media has emerged as a potential behavioral addiction with multiple consequences, especially in young adulthood (18–24 years). This study aimed to assess the relationship between excessive social media use, sociodemographics, and psychosocial constructs in a Hispanic college student sample. College students (n = 621; n = 456 females; n = 160 males) from a university located on the U.S./Mexico border completed a survey assessing sociodemographics, social media addiction, social media use, and psychosocial constructs (e.g., Internet motives, sensation seeking, and need for drama [NFD]). Descriptive analyses were conducted, as were two linear regressions assessing weekly social media use and social media addiction. Participants reported using social media an average of 20 hours a week (SD = 19.47). In addition, 57.9 percent of participants reported using social media once a day or more, whereas 15.1 percent met the social media addiction threshold. Weekly social media use was positively associated with NFD, socialization, and coping as motives while being negatively associated with age. Social media addiction was positively associated with NFD and coping while being negatively associated with age. Findings suggest that Hispanic college students evidence high social media use rates and may be using social media as an unhealthy strategy to deal with negative mood and daily problems. Furthermore, college students may be using social media as an avenue to engage in attention-seeking behaviors and manipulation of others. Prospective studies are warranted to assess these relationships temporally, as are intervention efforts aimed at reducing excessive social media use.

Introduction

Social media use prevalence

With the abundance of technological advances over the past decade, access to social media is unparalleled. Popular social media platforms include Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, and Tik Tok. In December 2020, Facebook had 1.84 billion daily active users and 2.80 billion active monthly users.¹ Perrin reports that 90 percent of all young adults use social media.² Seventy-six percent of young adults use Facebook; similarly, 75 and 73 percent of them use Instagram and Snapchat, respectively.³ Of interest, reports have suggested that Hispanics use social media at similar rates as other ethnocultural groups⁴; therefore, research assessing Hispanics' social media use is warranted.

The Facebook influence model

Facebook, a pioneer of social media platforms, allows users to interact socially in various ways. Moreno et al. conceptualized the scope of Facebook among 4 domains (e.g., comparison) and 13 clusters (e.g., curiosity about others) in their Facebook Influence Model.⁵ This study proposes age and gender and the following: sensation seeking, coping, enhancement, sociability, conformity, and need for drama (NFD) as potential motives for social media use and social media addiction within the Facebook influence model. Sensation seeking, coping, and enhancement relate to the domain of “Facebook as an experience” and converge across three clusters (distractions, positive experiences, and negative experiences) as motives for attaining or avoiding these outcomes. Sociability relates to the domain of “connection” and its cluster “connection to people,” whereas conformity is associated with the domain of “comparison” and the cluster of “Facebook establishing social norms.” Finally, NFD converges among the domains “connection,” “comparison,” and “Facebook as an experience,” and their respective clusters as an adverse personality trait that motivates individuals to affect these outcomes in a way that benefits or harms themselves and others. Although this model pertains to Facebook, given the similarities other social media platforms share with Facebook, the authors argue that this model can be generalized to all social media. Furthermore, other psychometric properties have also been generalized to all social media platforms.⁶

Social media use and sociodemographics

Although social media addiction is relevant to both males and females, females are more likely to develop social media addiction.^7,8 Furthermore, young adults tend to be more prone toward social media addiction than their older counterparts.^8,9 Although studies observe that sociodemographic characteristics are associated with social media addiction, few, if any, have assessed motives that correlate with social media use and social media addiction in a Hispanic sample. From 2000 to 2018, Hispanic enrollment in undergraduate universities increased by ∼148 percent, the greatest increase of any minority group.¹⁰ In addition, Hispanics are the largest ethnocultural minority, with an estimated 60.6 million individuals living in the United States¹¹; thus, research assessing their social media patterns is warranted.

Social media use and mental health consequences

Although social media use can be beneficial,^12,13 excessive use can be detrimental to one's mental health. Multiple studies have demonstrated relationships between greater social media use and lower self esteem,^8,14,15 poor emotional regulation,¹⁶ increased anxiety and stress,¹⁷ and depressive symptoms.¹⁸ In fact, a recent meta-analysis observed an association between time spent on social media and depression, though the effect size was small.¹⁹ In college students, lower self-esteem was significantly related to both increasing use and addictive social media tendencies.¹⁹ Notably, social media use has also been positively associated with stress in a Latinx sample.²⁰ These mental health consequences of social media use suggest a strong need to assess Latinx college students' motivations to use social media and which among these may be related to social media addiction.

Social media use and motives

Internet use motives related to the domains and clusters of the Facebook Influence Model that have been associated with social media use include socialization, development and maintenance of relationships, social conformity, and entertainment,^21,22 yet these were assessed in non-Hispanic ethnocultural groups. A more dated study in Hispanic college students, however, observed the use of social media for entertainment purposes relative to sociability and coursework motives²³; however, no other studies have assessed social media use and motives within a Hispanic sample, further highlighting a gap in the social media literature.

A more behavioral externalizing potential motive for excessive social media use (e.g., distractions and positive experiences clusters) is sensation seeking. Individuals who are sensation seekers tend to pursue novel experiences and to engage in risky behaviors.²⁴ Sensation seeking has also been associated with traditional addictive behaviors (e.g., drinking, illicit drug use)^25,26; Furthermore, one study has assessed sensation seeking in relation to playing video games on social media²⁷; thus, it is appropriate to assess its relationship with social media use and addiction, especially given the lack of previous studies doing so in Latinx groups.

Personality traits, such as neuroticism,⁹ extraversion, unconscientiousness,²⁸ and narcissism (males only),²⁹ have also been associated with social media use. Relatedly, a more recently conceptualized personality trait, NFD, encompasses manipulation, perceived victimhood, and impulsive outspokenness. Furthermore, it is suggested that individuals with this trait enjoy promoting chaos, and employing impulsive manipulation among their friends, family, and job environments.³⁰ NFD emphasizes individual traits that have not been assessed in relation to social media, though given its characteristics, research on this maladaptive trait seems fitting, and assessing these personality characteristics in Latinx college students appears particularly novel.

Aims and hypotheses

Given the paucity of research assessing Hispanic college students' social media use patterns, this study aimed to fill this gap in the literature by assessing sociodemographic and psychosocial constructs (e.g., motives of use, sensation seeking, and NFD) in relation to social media use and addiction—within the Facebook Influence Model. Three hypotheses were tested: H1: Within the domains of Facebook as an experience, connection, and comparison, Internet motives coping, enhancement, sociability, and conformity would be positively associated with greater social media use and social media addiction. H2: Within the domain of Facebook as an experience, higher sensation-seeking scores would be positively associated with greater social media use and social media addiction. H3: Within the domain of Facebook as an experience, higher need for drama scores would also be positively associated with greater social media use and social media addiction (Fig. 1).

FIG. 1.

Hypothesized and statistically significant relationships with weekly social media use and social media addiction. Figure 1 is designed to provide readers an overview of the hypothesized relationships within the study between two outcome variables, weekly social media use and social media addiction, and the independent variables: NFD, SSS-V, and the four subscales of the IMQ-A (enhancement, coping, socialization, conformity). All independent variables are hypothesized to be positively related to both dependent variables. Statistically significant outcomes are indicated with an asterisk. IMQ-A, Internet Motive Questionnaire for Adolescents; NFD, need for drama; SSS-V, sensation-seeking scale V.

Methods

Participants

A sample of 621 college students (Mage = 21.07 years, SD = 3.60; 73.5 percent female) participated in an online survey through self-report after completing an informed consent form. Participants were recruited from a university located on the U.S./Mexico border. The single inclusion criterion was self-reporting as Hispanic. There were no other exclusion criteria.

Measures

Sociodemographics

An 11-item demographic questionnaire assessed typical sociodemographic information (e.g., gender, age).

Social media use frequency

This 5-item questionnaire was created for the purposes of this study. The items, through self-report, assessed participant's frequency of social media use within the past week and month.

The Bergen social media addiction scale

The Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS) is a 6-item scale that assesses an individual's level of social media addiction. Items on the BSMAS are scored on a 5-point Likert scale that ranges from 1 (Very Rarely) to 5 (Very Often). Previously, the BSMAS has demonstrated high internal consistency (α = 0.88).⁸ Items were summed to compute a total score; higher scores indicated greater social media addiction. The BSMAS's internal consistency in this study was adequate (α = 0.82).

Internet motive questionnaire for adolescents

The Internet Motive Questionnaire for Adolescents (IMQ-A) is a 16-item four-factor model that includes enhancement, coping, social, and conformity subscales that aim to assess motives for using the Internet. Items are answered on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (Almost Never) to 5 (Almost Always). Internal consistency for the IMQ-A subscales ranged from respectable to high (α = 0.71–0.86).³¹ Items within each subscale were summed, and a mean score was computed for each. Internal consistency for the IMQ-A's subscales in this study ranged from adequate to high (α = 0.82–0.90).

Sensation-seeking scale V

The sensation-seeking scale V (SSS-V) assesses an individual's inclination to take risks and experience novel/unfamiliar sensations. SSS-V is a 40-item scale that consists of four subscales: boredom susceptibility, disinhibition, experience seeking, and thrill and adventure seeking. Items contain two answer choices from which the participant must choose what they relate to the most (e.g., I like “wild” uninhibited parties). One point is added for every “high” sensation-seeking answer choice that is selected.²⁴ Items are summed for a total score, with higher scores indicating that an individual is more likely to seek out novel sensations. SSS-V's internal consistency was respectable (α = 0.76). Zuckerman's internal consistency on the total score for the SSS-V ranged from α = 0.83 to 0.86.²⁴

NFD scale

The NFD scale is a 12-item scale consisting of three subscales: interpersonal manipulation, impulsive outspokenness, and persistent perceived victimhood. The NFD aims to assess an individual's maladaptive characteristics (e.g., manipulative). Items were answered on a 7-point scale ranging from 1 (Strongly Disagree) to 7 (Strongly Agree).²⁶ Items from each subscale were summed, and a total mean score was computed. The NFD scale demonstrated an adequate internal consistency (α = 0.81) that is similar to that of Frankowski et al.’ college sample (α = 0.77).³⁰

Procedure

Before study implementation, approval was obtained from the university's IRB. Participants were recruited through SONA-system, a secure web-based recruitment website. Participants read and electronically signed an informed consent form indicating they agreed to take part in the survey. Once consent was obtained, participants completed a series of questionnaires, not connected to the consent form, and received class credit for participation.

Approach to analyses

Descriptive analyses were conducted to yield participant characteristics of the sample. Two linear regression models assessed the relationship between social media patterns and psychosocial constructs. Perceived weekly social media use and the BSMAS were the dependent variables; the following were the independent variables: gender, age, IMQ-A subscales, SSS-V total, and NFD total.

Results

Participants reported using social media an average of 20.15 (SD = 19.47) hours per week and, on average, were on social media 79.83 (SD = 87.56) hours a month. In total, 32.4 percent of students reported that they were using social media nearly every day during the past month, whereas 57.9 percent reported using social media once a day or more. Furthermore, 15.1 percent of participants met the threshold for social media addiction, according to Andreassen et al.'s monothetic cutoff approach³² (Table 1).

Table 1.

Participant Characteristics

Participants (n = 621)
Characteristic	Frequency (n)/mean (SD)	Range
Age	21.07 (3.60)	18–52
Female	73.5 percent (456)
Male	25.8 percent (160)
BSMAS	15.99 (5.19)	6–30
Under addiction monothetic score	84.9 percent (509)
Above addiction monothetic score	15.1 percent (94)
IMQ-A
Enhancement	10.62 (3.83)	4–20
Coping	9.69 (4.18)	4–20
Social	11.17 (3.94)	4–20
Conformity	7.14 (3.64)	4–20
NFD	3.45 (.96)	1–6.5
SSS-V	18.35 (5.67)	3–34
Weekly social media use	20.15 (19.47)	0–168
Monthly social media use	79.83 (87.56)	0–700
Monthly social media use frequency
Did not use at all	1.6 percent (10)
Once a month	0.3 percent (2)
Two to three times a month	1.6 percent (10)
Once or twice a week	1.9 percent (12)
Three to four times a week	4.2 percent (26)
Nearly every day	32.4 percent (201)
Once a day or more	57.9 percent (359)

Note: Weekly social media use = perceived weekly social media use in hours. Any sample size deviations are a result of missing data.

BSMAS, Bergen social media addiction scale; IMQ-A, Internet motives questionnaire for adolescents; NFD, need for drama; SSS-V, sensation-seeking scale V.

Weekly social media use

The first regression model assessing predictors of weekly social media use was statistically significant, F(8, 496) = 9.61, p < 0.01, adjusted R² = 0.12 (Table 2). The model showed that an increase in weekly social media use was negatively associated with age (e.g., the younger the individual, the more time they spent on social media per week) (b = −0.723, p < 0.01). The IMQ-A coping subscale (b = 0.805, p < 0.01), IMQ-A social subscale (b = 1.055, p < 0.01), and NFD total (b = 1.943, p < 0.05) were positively associated with an increase in weekly social media use.

Table 2.

Linear Regression: Weekly Social Media Use

	95 percent CI
	B	SE	b	Lower	Upper
Age	−0.723	0.221	−0.139	−1.157	−0.289
Gender	3.024	1.750	0.073	−0.415	6.462
NFD	1.943	0.891	0.097	0.194	3.693
SSS-V	−0.207	0.147	−0.061	−0.495	0.082
IMQ-A: Enhancement	−0.107	0.285	−0.021	−0.666	0.453
IMQ-A: Coping	0.805	0.258	0.178	0.297	1.313
IMQ-A: Social	1.055	0.231	0.219	0.602	1.508
IMQ-A: Conformity	−0.456	0.262	−0.085	−0.970	0.058

Note: Bold indicates p < 0.05. Overall model was significant, F(8, 496) = 9.61, p < 0.01, adjusted R² = 0.12.

Social media addiction

The second regression model assessing predictors of social media addiction use was statistically significant, F(8, 493) = 20.17, p < 0.01, adjusted R² = 0.23 (Table 3). The model showed that an increase in social media addiction was negatively associated with age (e.g., the younger the participant, the more likely addicted to social media) (b = −0.202, p < 0.01). The IMQ-A coping subscale (b = 0.382, p < 0.01) and NFD total (b = 0.638, p < 0.01) were positively associated with an increase in social media addiction.

Table 3.

Linear Regression: Social Media Addiction

	95 percent CI
	B	SE	b	Lower	Upper
Age	−0.202	0.056	−0.144	−0.311	−0.093
Gender	0.505	0.442	0.045	0.363	1.372
NFD	0.638	0.228	0.117	0.190	1.086
SSS-V	−0.011	0.037	−0.012	−0.084	0.061
IMQ-A: Enhancement	0.136	0.071	0.101	−0.005	0.276
IMQ-A: Coping	0.382	0.065	0.314	0.254	0.510
IMQ-A: Social	0.014	0.058	0.011	−0.099	0.128
IMQ-A: Conformity	0.072	0.066	0.050	−0.058	0.202

Note: Bold indicates p < 0.05. Overall model was significant, F(8, 493) = 20.17, p < 0.01, adjusted R² = 0.23.

Discussion

The present findings clearly indicate a high rate of social media use among participants, as well as a nontrivial rate of social media addiction (15.1 percent meeting the threshold).³² Here, Hispanic college students spent an average of 20 hours a week (79 hours per month) on social media, whereas in 2016, a sample of Hispanic college students on the U.S./Mexico border reported using social media 46 hours a month,³³ which reflects a 75.54 percent increase in roughly 3 years, further suggesting that there has been a vast increase in social media use among border region college students. Although social media use may have some healthful consequences, the level of use observed here, coupled with noted increases over time, is difficult to interpret as moderate; thus, future prospective studies should more deliberately measure consequences of social media use, yet include potentially healthy ones.

Social media and sociodemographics

Although females seem more likely to develop social media addiction,^34,35 being female was not associated with social media addiction, which may indicate that despite high rates of use, the components of addiction are observed in both males and females. Consistent with past research, younger age was associated with increased social media use and a greater likelihood of social media addiction.^8,9,36 Thus, it appears that not only is use higher than previously observed,³³ it is manifesting earlier, and in some cases as addictive. Based on these findings, a prospective study, assessing even younger individuals on the border seems warranted to explore whether higher weekly social media use may eventually result in social media addiction.

Social media and Internet motives

That higher social motives were associated with an increase in weekly social media use suggests that college students are using social media to seek out others and develop and maintain relationships. This is consistent with the Facebook Influence Model suggesting social media as a multifaceted interface for connecting to others and establishing social norms.⁵ This finding aligns with past research that associates socialization as a motive for using specific social media platforms such as Instagram^22,37 as well as social media as a whole.²¹

Consistent with a recent study within an Italian sample on Facebook,³⁸ higher coping motives were associated with an increase in weekly social media use and social media addiction, suggesting that college students are using social media to address negative moods and problems. Coping motives have also been found to mediate the relationship between individuals' who score high on neuroticism and social media addiction,³⁹ again highlighting that social media may be used as an avenue to alleviate negative feelings. However, multiple previous studies demonstrate a relationship between social media use and stress, anxiety, and depression,^17–19,40 which may suggest social media use and addiction as poor coping strategies. Seemingly related to coping however, in the midst of the global COVID-19 pandemic, in a recent study, social media use was positively associated with perceived risk of COVID-19 and adherence to containment guidelines, whereas social media addiction was inversely related to perceived seriousness, risk, and adherence.⁴¹ Thus, social media use may serve as a healthy coping strategy, while addiction to it may be deleterious. Although mental illness symptoms were not addressed here, further research assessing social media and mental health constructs is warranted, particularly within a Hispanic sample, as only one study has assessed this relationship within this subgroup.²⁰ In addition, as past studies have been largely cross-sectional, a prospective more nuanced assessment of the relationships among mental illness constructs, coping, and social media use is needed to explore temporality.

Social media and NFD

That higher NFD was associated with both increased weekly social media use and social media addiction suggests that individuals who are high in this maladaptive trait may be using social media to engage in impulsive outspokenness.³⁰ Consistent with the Facebook Influence Model, social media provides increased access to countless people online, and a more in-depth look into others' private lives. Given that social media is so far reaching, it may be that people who are high on NFD exploit the convenience social media offers to engage in interpersonal manipulation and invading the privacy of others while portraying themselves as victims to garner attention. Because NFD is a novel construct, there is a paucity of research assessing its relationships with social media use and addiction; however, NFD's relationship with the dark triad, poor locus of control, and attitudes toward gossip,³⁰ coupled with the present findings, suggest its inclusion in future similar and prospective studies.

Limitations and strengths

This study's limitations include its cross-sectional correlational design, not allowing the assessment of observed relationships over time. Second, a convenience sample was used, resulting in the majority of the sample being female (73.5 percent); however, the sample size was large enough to explore observed relationships across both genders adequately. That Hispanic college students comprised the sample may limit the generalizability of the findings to other age, noncollege young adults, and ethnocultural groups. However, this study is one of few, if not the first, to assess motives associated with social media use and social media addiction in a Hispanic sample, thus also rendering it a strength.

Conclusions and Future Directions

Findings suggest the importance of younger age, NFD, and Internet motives, particularly social and coping motives, as they relate to excessive social media use and addiction. Future prospective studies are warranted to explore the temporal nature of the relationships between social media use, social media addiction, Internet motives, and psychosocial constructs, such as personality traits. In addition, future research is needed to validate the proposed adaptation of the Facebook Influence Model to a more generalized overarching social media influence model. Taking these findings together, developing and testing the efficacy of interventions that focus on these motives and maladaptive traits (e.g., coping motives, NFD) are also warranted. Although previous research has focused primarily on social media abstinence,^42–44 a more reasonable goal may be the reduction of social media use given its ubiquitous nature. Suggestions for intervention efforts include motivational enhancement with young adults eliciting and weighing healthy uses relative to adverse effects of excessive social media use and social media addiction; providing relevant strategies for reducing social media use (e.g., self-monitoring, health alternatives), including effective problem-solving skills in efforts to possibly mitigate the maladaptive dependence on social media to cope with stressful events or mental health disruptions; and using cognitive behavioral strategies to promote healthy social support seeking. Strong research and clinical efforts are needed to elucidate these relationships, emphasizing healthy facets of social media use and reducing the deleterious effects of social media addiction.

Authors' Contributions

M.L. carried out conceptualization, formal analysis, and writing—original draft. C.M. was involved in conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, and writing—review and editing. K.S. performed data curation, and writing—review and editing. Cooper carried out conceptualization, methodology, investigation, resources, formal analysis, and writing—review and editing, supervision.

Author Disclosure Statement

No competing financial interests exist.

Funding Information

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.