This study evaluates the effectiveness of the 4-STEP Training Program in reducing social media addiction and improving psychological well-being among adolescents. Increasing use of social media has been linked with anxiety, depression, stress, sleep problems, low self-esteem, and reduced academic performance, particularly among adolescents who are more vulnerable to social comparison, fear of missing out, and reliance on online validation. To address this issue, a structured intervention integrating psychoeducation, cognitive-behavioral techniques, and relapse prevention strategies is implemented. The study will involve adolescents aged 13-18 years from private schools and colleges, selected based on standardized cut-off scores for social media addiction and low flourishing. The effectiveness of the program will be assessed by comparing experimental and control groups using validated psychological measures. It is expected that the intervention will significantly reduce social media addiction and psychological distress while improving emotional regulation, flourishing, and academic functioning.
Adolescents aged 13-18 years
Individuals reporting moderate to high levels of social media addiction (based on standardized scale cut-off, e.g., BSMAS/SNAS)
Regular social media users with an average daily usage of 4 hours or more
Willingness to participate with informed consent and parental consent
Adolescents who do not meet the inclusion criteria
Diagnosed with severe psychiatric disorders (e.g., psychosis, severe depression)
Currently receiving psychological or psychiatric treatment for addiction-related problems
Presence of serious physical or neurological conditions
Parallel
4-STEP-Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS)
BehavioralThe 4-STEP Training Program (4-STEP-TPS) is distinguished from existing interventions by its structured, multi-component, and individualized approach specifically designed for adolescent social media addiction. Unlike traditional interventions that often rely on a single method such as psychoeducation or cognitive-behavioral therapy alone, this program integrates psychoeducation, case conceptualization, cognitive-behavioral techniques, self-regulation strategies, and relapse prevention within a sequential four-step framework. It is delivered on an individual basis, allowing personalized goal-setting and intervention planning according to each participant's social media use patterns and psychological needs. Additionally, the program incorporates continuous self-monitoring and behavioral tracking to enhance awareness and control over usage behaviors. Another key feature is its holistic focus, addressing not only addiction but also related outcomes such as psychological distress, sleep pr
Social Networking Addiction Scale (SNAS, Shahnawaz & Rehman, 2020)
The 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 1517), and relapse (items 18-21) (Shahnawaz \& Rehman, 2020). The SNAS is a 21-item self-reported scale rated on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The score can range from 21 to 147. Any total score above 84 indicates addiction. The scale has demonstrated good test-retest reliability (0.88) and good validity, as reported by Shahnawaz and Rehman (2020).
Secure Flourish Index (SFI, Weziak-Bialowolska et al., 2017)
The Secure Flourish Index (SFI) was developed to measure long-term flourishing across 6 domains happiness and life satisfaction (items 1-2), physical and mental health (items 3-4), meaning and purpose (items 5-6), character and virtue (items 7-8), close social relationships (items 9-10), and financial and material stability (items 11-12) (WeziakBialowolska et al., 2017). It is a self-report scale with 2 items per domain, totaling 12 items, rated on a 0-10 scale. Total scores range from 0 to 120, with higher scores indicating greater flourishing. It has an internal consistency of 0.85 and good construct validity (Weziak-Bialowolska et al., 2017).
Fatigue Assessment Scale (FAS, Michielsen et al., 2003)
The Fatigue Assessment Scale (FAS) was developed to evaluate the physical and mental symptoms of fatigue (Michielsen et al., 2003). It is a self-report measure with 10 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (always). The scale has 2 subscales: mental fatigue, measured by the sum of items 3, 6, 7, 8, and 9, and physical fatigue, measured by the sum of items 1, 2, 4, 5, and 10. Items 4 and 10 are reverse-scored. The total scores range from 10 (lowest level of fatigue) to 50 (highest level of fatigue). The scale has an internal consistency of 0.90 and good validity (Michielsen et al., 2003).
Insomnia Severity Index (ISI, Bastien et al., 2001)
The Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) was developed as a screening measure for insomnia as well as an outcome measure in treatment research (Bastien et al., 2001). It is a self-report measure with 7 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 to 4. The total score ranges from 0 to 28, with higher scores indicating more severe insomnia symptoms. Although not validated, the developers suggest cutoff scores to be used for interpretation, with total scores of 0-7 indicating "no clinically significant insomnia," scores between 8-14 indicating "subthreshold insomnia," scores between 15-21 indicating "clinical insomnia (moderate severity)," and scores in the range 22-28 indicating "clinical insomnia (severe)." The scale has an internal consistency of 0.74 (Bastien et al., 2001).
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