Social Media Addiction and Fear of War in Germany
Individuals with an excessive use of social media may be frequently exposed to stimuli, such as (fake) news or images of violence, which might lead to a higher fear of war. Therefore, the objective of this study is to examine the association between a social media addiction and fear of war (conventi...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-11-01
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| Series: | Psychiatry International |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5318/3/4/25 |
| _version_ | 1797455518035345408 |
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| author | André Hajek Benedikt Kretzler Hans-Helmut König |
| author_facet | André Hajek Benedikt Kretzler Hans-Helmut König |
| author_sort | André Hajek |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Individuals with an excessive use of social media may be frequently exposed to stimuli, such as (fake) news or images of violence, which might lead to a higher fear of war. Therefore, the objective of this study is to examine the association between a social media addiction and fear of war (conventional war and nuclear war) in Germany. Data were taken from a nationally representative survey with n = 3091 participants (18 to 74 years; data collection in mid-March 2022). Social media addiction was quantified using the validated Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale. Moreover, established items were used to quantify a fear of war. Medium differences (in terms of Cohen’s d) were identified regarding the fear of war between individuals without a social media addiction and individuals with a social media addiction. Adjusting for several covariates, the regressions revealed that individuals with a social media addiction had a higher fear of war compared to individuals without a social media addiction (fear of a conventional war: β = 0.44, <i>p</i> < 0.01; fear of a nuclear war: β = 0.61, <i>p</i> < 0.001). In conclusion, our study demonstrated an association between a social media addiction and fear of war. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T15:55:27Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6699faecaa4f4058ba1eaa10d9f5b9d3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2673-5318 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T15:55:27Z |
| publishDate | 2022-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Psychiatry International |
| spelling | doaj.art-6699faecaa4f4058ba1eaa10d9f5b9d32023-11-24T17:42:11ZengMDPI AGPsychiatry International2673-53182022-11-013431331910.3390/psychiatryint3040025Social Media Addiction and Fear of War in GermanyAndré Hajek0Benedikt Kretzler1Hans-Helmut König2Department of Health Economics and Health Services Research, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg Center for Health Economics, 20246 Hamburg, GermanyDepartment of Health Economics and Health Services Research, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg Center for Health Economics, 20246 Hamburg, GermanyDepartment of Health Economics and Health Services Research, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg Center for Health Economics, 20246 Hamburg, GermanyIndividuals with an excessive use of social media may be frequently exposed to stimuli, such as (fake) news or images of violence, which might lead to a higher fear of war. Therefore, the objective of this study is to examine the association between a social media addiction and fear of war (conventional war and nuclear war) in Germany. Data were taken from a nationally representative survey with n = 3091 participants (18 to 74 years; data collection in mid-March 2022). Social media addiction was quantified using the validated Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale. Moreover, established items were used to quantify a fear of war. Medium differences (in terms of Cohen’s d) were identified regarding the fear of war between individuals without a social media addiction and individuals with a social media addiction. Adjusting for several covariates, the regressions revealed that individuals with a social media addiction had a higher fear of war compared to individuals without a social media addiction (fear of a conventional war: β = 0.44, <i>p</i> < 0.01; fear of a nuclear war: β = 0.61, <i>p</i> < 0.001). In conclusion, our study demonstrated an association between a social media addiction and fear of war.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5318/3/4/25fear of warnuclear warwarsocial mediasocial networksocial web |
| spellingShingle | André Hajek Benedikt Kretzler Hans-Helmut König Social Media Addiction and Fear of War in Germany Psychiatry International fear of war nuclear war war social media social network social web |
| title | Social Media Addiction and Fear of War in Germany |
| title_full | Social Media Addiction and Fear of War in Germany |
| title_fullStr | Social Media Addiction and Fear of War in Germany |
| title_full_unstemmed | Social Media Addiction and Fear of War in Germany |
| title_short | Social Media Addiction and Fear of War in Germany |
| title_sort | social media addiction and fear of war in germany |
| topic | fear of war nuclear war war social media social network social web |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-5318/3/4/25 |
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