MEDIATING ROLE OF ONLINE SOCIAL CONNECTEDNESS IN SMARTPHONE ADDICTION AND ONLINE RELATIONSHIP AMONG YOUNG ADULTS

The smartphones have transformed the way, young adults communicate and form relationships, but its misuse increasingly distracts from academic pursuits, that necessitate additional explorations towards diverse effects of smartphone addiction.This study aims to investigate that how online social connectedness mediates the relationship between smartphone addiction and online relationships among young adults, addressing gaps in existing literature. The correlational design and purposive sampling technique was employed wherein participants completed smartphone addiction scale to measure smartphone addiction, the social connectedness scale the online relationship initiation scale to measure online relationship in young adults. Findings revealed a significant relationship between smartphone addiction and online relationships. The results offer significant information in chasing the direct and indirect relationships, reaching the conclusion and making the suitable decisions about the hypotheses. The study concludes that the smartphone addiction significantly influences online relations, highlighting the standing of managing smartphone use to improve the young adult wellbeing. The study is expected to contribute the existing literature from different dimesnions.