A Study on Social Media Addiction: Vocational School Case with University Students

Abstract

Aim: This study was conducted to assess the degree of social media addiction among students in vocational schools. Method: The study population consisted of Vocational School students enrolled in two universities in the spring semester of 2017-2018. The study attempted to reach the entire population without selecting any sample. The study was accomplished by students (n=370) who voluntarily participated and completely filled out the questionnaire forms. The Introductory Information Form and the Social Media Addiction Scale were used to collect data. The study was conducted in compliance with ethical norms at all stages. Results: The statistical findings of the students participating in the study were as follows: their average age was 21.23 ± 3.14 years, 99.5% used social media, 85.1% used Instagram, 0.8% used LinkedIn, 76% of them only used mobile devices for accessing, 32.7% used social media for 4-6 years, and 46.2% was social media user for 1-3 hours a day. There was a significant difference between the mean scores of social media addiction in terms of the duration of social media use (p<0.001). The average score of the students who use social media for less than 1 hour, between 1-3 hours, 4-6 hours, and over 7 hours was identified as 73.0, 87.5, 105.9, and 125.9, respectively. There was a considerable difference between each group in the amount of duration of social media use. However, the mean scores for social media addiction did not differ when considering the purpose of utilizing social media (p>0.050). Conclusion: Social media addiction was found to be related to the time spent on social media platforms. However, there was no significant relationship between addiction and the purpose of social media use.