St James, Demelza (2024) Examining the Relationship Between Social Rewards and Problematic Social Media Use in Australian Emerging Adults. Honours thesis, University of Southern Queensland. (Unpublished)
Abstract
Problematic social media use (PSMU) relates to a person’s uncontrollable use and excessive concern for social media. Research has indicated that PSMU can negatively impact areas of an individual’s life, such as work and personal relationships, and has been associated with anxiety, depression, lower self-esteem, loneliness, and poorer sleep quality. Despite these concerns, there has been limited research into the social motivations that contribute to PSMU within an Australian sample, specifically with emerging adults. This study aimed to explore the association between the social rewards of admiration, prosocial interactions, sociability, negative social potency, and PSMU, hypothesising a positive relationship. In addition, it was hypothesised that higher levels of these social rewards predicted higher levels of PSMU. Participants (N = 110) aged 18-29 years, completed an online survey utilising the Social Rewards Questionnaire and Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale. Correlation analysis showed that admiration and negative social potency had positive significant relationships with PSMU. Overall, the predictive model was significant with a large effect size f2 = .51. Admiration (β = .28, t = 2.35, p = .02) and negative social potency (β = .39, t = 3.17, p = .002) emerged as unique significant predictors, with negative social potency revealed as the strongest. These findings extend upon the current research into PSMU, by furthering understanding of which social rewards can influence problematic use, assisting with the development of evidence-based interventions.
|
Statistics for this ePrint Item |
| Item Type: | Thesis (Non-Research) (Honours) |
|---|---|
| Item Status: | Live Archive |
| Additional Information: | Current UniSQ staff and students can request access to this thesis. Please email research.repository@unisq.edu.au with a subject line of SEAR thesis request and provide: Name of the thesis requested and Your name and UniSQ email address |
| Faculty/School / Institute/Centre: | Current – Faculty of Health, Engineering and Sciences - School of Psychology and Wellbeing (1 Jan 2022 -) |
| Supervisors: | Marrington, Jessica |
| Qualification: | Bachelor of Science (Honours) (Psychology) |
| Date Deposited: | 29 Jan 2026 01:43 |
| Last Modified: | 29 Jan 2026 01:43 |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Australian emerging adults, problematic social media use, social rewards |
| Fields of Research (2008): | 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 1701 Psychology > 170106 Health, Clinical and Counselling Psychology |
| Fields of Research (2020): | 52 PSYCHOLOGY > 5203 Clinical and health psychology > 520304 Health psychology |
| URI: | https://sear.unisq.edu.au/id/eprint/53117 |
Actions (login required)
 |
Archive Repository Staff Only |
