Perceived Stress and Social Media Addiction: Mediating Role of Flow Experiences

Öz

Social media addiction is a problem that has been emphasized in recent years and experienced by university students. Researchers have carried out many studies to clarify its antecedents and reduce this addiction. However, little is known about the positive effect of flow experiences in reducing social media addiction. In this context, the goal of this current research is to determine the mediator role of flow experiences in the relations between perceived stress and social media addiction. Participants comprised 542 university students (377 female and 165 male). The research used the Social Media Addiction Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Flow State Scale. Research results demonstrate that perceived stress and social media addiction have a statistically significant positive correlation, while flow experiences have a negative correlation. The findings also showed a bad correlation between social media addiction and experiences of flow. The mediation analysis results showed that flow experiences have a statistically significant mediating role in the relationships between perceived stress and social media addiction. Research findings underline that the positive effect of flow experiences is essential in reducing perceived stress’s impact on social media addiction.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Flow experiences
• social media addiction
• stress
• mediation analysis

Algılanan Stres ve Sosyal Medya Bağımlılığı: Akış Yaşantılarının Aracı Rolü

Öz

Sosyal medya bağımlılığı son yıllarda üzerinde önemle durulan ve üniversite öğrencilerinin yaşadığı bir sorundur. Araştırmacılar sosyal medya bağımlılığının öncüllerini tespit etmek ve bu bağımlılığı azaltmak için birçok çalışma gerçekleştirmiştir. Ancak aktiviteye odaklanma ve kontrol etme ile karakterize edilen akış deneyimlerinin olumlu etkisine sosyal medya bağımlılığının azaltılmasında daha az yer verilmektedir. Bu bağlamda, bu araştırma algılanan stres ve sosyal medya bağımlılığı arasındaki ilişkide akış deneyimlerinin aracılık rolünü belirlemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Katılımcılar 542 üniversite öğrencisinden (377 kadın, 165 erkek) oluşmaktadır. Araştırmada veri toplama aracı olarak kişisel bilgi formu, Sosyal Medya Bağımlılığı Ölçeği, Algılanan Stres Ölçeği ve Akış Durumları Ölçeği kullanılmıştır. Araştırma bulguları, algılanan stres ile sosyal medya bağımlılığı arasında pozitif, akış deneyimleri arasında ise negatif bir ilişki olduğunu göstermektedir. Aynı zamanda, sonuçlar akış deneyimleri ile sosyal medya bağımlılığı arasında negatif bir ilişki olduğunu ortaya koymuştur. Algılanan stres ile sosyal medya bağımlılığı arasındaki ilişkide akış deneyimlerinin aracılık etkisi bulunmaktadır. Araştırma bulguları, akış deneyimlerinin olumlu etkisinin, algılanan stresin sosyal medya bağımlılığı üzerindeki etkisini azaltmada önemli olduğunun altını çizmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Akış yaşantıları
• sosyal medya bağımlılığı
• stres
• aracılık analizi

Kaynakça

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