The Relationship between Personality Traits and Facebook Addiction among Adolescents in an Urban, Rural and Semi-Rural Secondary School

Mokoena Patronella Maepa () and Alicia Wheeler
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Mokoena Patronella Maepa: Clinical Psychology Department, School of Medicine, Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University, Ga-Rankuwa 0208, South Africa
Alicia Wheeler: Psychology Department, Health Sciences Faculty, North-West University, Mafikeng 2735, South Africa

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 20, 1-9

Abstract: Facebook is and was intended to provide a place for friends to connect within the bustling academic environment and to encourage openness for ideas and interests. When used sparingly, it can provide an individual with a sense of group belonging and connection, sharing and offering hope and advice. The misuse of Facebook can have detrimental effects on one’s quality of life that often lead to addiction. In this correlation design study, secondary-school-aged adolescents’ Facebook addiction was compared to personality attributes. Through a convenience sample, 240 teenagers in total (106 men and 134 females) were chosen. The respondents answered questions about their demographics, Facebook Addiction, and Junior Eysenck Personality. The findings showed a substantial inverse correlation between Facebook addiction and neuroticism (r = −0.260, p < 0.01) and psychoticism (r = −0.189, p < 0.01). There was no discernible statistical link between Facebook Addiction and Extraversion. The study comes to the conclusion that although social networking sites such as Facebook have good effects on adolescents’ lives, their use needs to be regulated, the risks were highlighted, and at-risk individuals can receive intervention approaches, such as social skills training.

Keywords: social networking sites; Facebook; Facebook addiction; personality traits (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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