VALIDATION OF SOCIAL MEDIA DEPENDENCY SCALES FOR YOUTH PSYCHOLOGY

Abstract

The pervasive presence of social media in everyday life has increasingly shaped the psychological well-being of young people, underscoring the need for precise measurement of social media dependency. This investigation seeks to validate a multidimensional instrument that quantifies social media dependency in youth, addressing emotional, behavioral, and cognitive components. We collected data from a diverse group of teenagers and young adults and then ran a series of careful tests: first, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) to see how the responses grouped together; next, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) to confirm those groupings; and finally, we checked to make sure the measure worked the same for boys and girls, as well as for those who use social media often and those who use it less. The results showed that the Social Media Dependency Scale (SMDS) is both reliable and valid, making it a helpful tool for researchers and mental health professionals who study how digital media affects young people’s mental well-being.