EFFECT OF SOCIAL MEDIA USAGE ON MENTAL HEALTH AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE OF UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Abstract

Social media has become a pervasive component of student life, shaping learning behaviours, communication patterns, and emotional well-being. While these platforms promote academic collaboration, knowledge sharing, and peer support, excessive or unregulated use can contribute to mental health challenges, reduced concentration, and declining academic performance. This study aimed to investigate how the use of social media can affect the mental health and academic performance of university students. The present study was quantitative in nature and employed a causal-comparative research design. All students of the undergraduate level of the public and private universities of the district Lahore were the population of the study. The sample size was selected by use of multistage random sampling technique. In the 1st stage, the researcher made two strata of the universities i.e.: one stratum of public universities and the second stratum of private universities. In the second stage, two universities of each stratum were selected on a convenience basis. At the third level, one hundred students in each university were chosen randomly. Four hundred students were chosen randomly from public and private universities. The findings indicate that heavy use of social media is related to psychological stress, a decrease in affective balance, sleep difficulties, an increase in comparison anxiety, and a decrease in mental health. It is recommended that Universities should also come up with awareness programs that will inform students on how to control their use of social media, especially when studying. Faculty should implement digital discipline policies into the curriculum, where students are advised to turn off notifications when they are doing academic assignments.