Scroll, Pause, and Repeat: How Social Media Fuels Procrastination and Disrupts Work-Life Balance

The current study investigates the interrelationships between social media use, social media fatigue, procrastination behavior, and work-life balance among corporate employees in Pakistan. The primary research objectives are to examine how social media fatigue mediates the relationship between social media usage and both procrastination and work-life balance, and to explore the moderating role of cognitive emotion appraisal in these dynamics. A quantitative methodology was employed using a sample of corporate employees, with data analyzed through Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results reveal that social media fatigue significantly mediates the impact of social media use on both procrastination and work-life balance, while cognitive emotion appraisal moderates these effects, particularly by reducing the negative outcomes associated with fatigue. The study concludes that effective emotional regulation strategies can mitigate the adverse effects of social media fatigue. Future research should explore these relationships across different industries and cultural contexts and consider longitudinal approaches to better understand the temporal effects of social media fatigue on employee performance and well-being.