Breaking the Cycle of Social Media Addiction: Efficacy of a 4-STEP Training Program in Reducing Cognitive Fatigue, Psychological Distress, Academic Procrastination, and Burnout Among Adolescents

Trial statusNot yet recruiting
Trial phaseNot applicable
Trial typeInterventional
Biological sexAll
Age13-18
SponsorGovernment College University Faisalabad

About this trial

The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate the effectiveness of the 4-Step Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS) in reducing social media addiction, cognitive fatigue, psychological distress, academic burnout, and procrastination among university students. The study aims to promote healthier digital habits, psychological well-being, and improved academic functioning. Participants with elevated social media addiction will complete a 4-week intervention with one session per week. They will be randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a waitlist control group. Pre- and post-intervention assessments will be conducted to determine the program's effectiveness.

Eligibility criteria

This trial accepts healthy volunteers

Qualifiers

None

Disqualifiers

None

Trial design

Design model

Parallel

Treatments tested in this trial

  • 4-STEP-TPS

    Behavioral

    Four-step training program designed to reduce social media addiction and related psychological/academic difficulties among students.

Treatment groups

200 Participants
are divided into 2 treatment groups
Group A: Experimental: Experimental Group: Individual Setting 4-STEP-Training Program in 1-1 SettingExperimental treatment 1 intervention
Group B: Control groupNo intervention 0 interventions

Trial outcomes

Primary outcomes

1

Social Networking Addiction Scale

Social Networking Addiction Scale (SNAS) was developed to measure addiction of all forms of social networking across six-dimensions salience (items 1-4), mood modification (items 5-7), tolerance (items 8-10), withdrawal (items 11-14), conflict (item 15-17), and relapse (items 18-21) (Shahnawaz \& Rehman, 2020). The SNAS is a self-reported scale which entails 21-items scale rated on 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The score can range from 21 to 147. Any score above a total score of 84 signifies addiction. The scale has demonstrated good test-retest reliability of 0.88 and good validity as reported by Shahnawaz and Rehman (2020).

Time frame
After 4 weeks and reassessment up to 6 months]
2

Multidimensional Fatigue Scale ( MFS)

The scale was designed to assess fatigue-related experiences among children and adolescents across multiple domains of functioning. The PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale consists of 18 items divided into three subscales: General Fatigue, Sleep/Rest Fatigue and Cognitive Fatigue with each subscale comprising six items. The instrument uses a 5-point Likert-scale response format which range from (0=Never to 4=Almost Always) with participants indicating how frequently they experienced each fatigue-related symptom during the past month. Lower scores on the Multidimentional Fatigue Scale items indicated greater levels of cognitive fatigue among the participants (Varni, n.d.).

Time frame
after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
3

Tuckman Procrastination Scale

The scale was developed to assess individual's tendencies to delay, postpone or avoid completing tasks and responsibilities. Since its development the TPS has been widely used to examine procrastination in educational settings among adolescent and student populations. The scale consists of 16 items and employs a 4-point Likert-scale response format ranging from (1=That is not me for sure, to 4=That is me for sure). Participants are asked to indicate the extent to which each statement describes their typical behavior. Higher scores on the scale indicate a greater tendency toward procrastination.

Time frame
at screening after 4 weekds, and reassessment up to 6 months]
4

School Burnout Inventory

School Burnout Inventory (SBI-9) 2009a). The instrument was designed to assess school-related burnout among adolescents and has been widely used in educational and psychological research to evaluate students' experiences of exhaustion and disengagement related to academic demands. In the present study, the School Burnout Inventory was administered to measure academic burnout among adolescent school students. The instrument was considered appropriate because it captures the multidimensional nature of burnout within the school context and has demonstrated satisfactory psychometric properties among adolescent populations. Scores on all items were summed to obtain an overall measure of academic burnout with higher scores reflecting greater levels of burnout.

Time frame
At screening, after 4 weeks and reassessment upto 6 months

Secondary outcomes

Other outcomes

Sponsors and contacts

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