Development and validation of Ali yousuf digital detox need scale for teachers

The current study aimed to develop and validate a very short Digital Detox Need Scale to assess the need for digital detox among teachers to avoid stress posed by constant job-related notifications on personal devices (cell- phones) and educational technology in academic settings (Personal Computers or PC’s in educational institutes). Grounded in the Basic Psychological Need Theory, the scale addresses autonomy, competence, and relatedness in the context of digital well-being. A mixed-method approach involving qualitative interviews, (n = 85), a feedback pilot study with a committee approach, a scale development study (n = 172), and a validation study (n = 308) through Exploratory and Confirmatory Factor Analyses. The scale was validated with 4 other scales i.e. it showed a strong convergent validity with global job satisfaction scale and teacher’s burnout scale, showed a strong predictive validity with the love of life scale and strong discriminant validity with the compulsive eating scale. The final scale revealed two subscales each having 3 items: Detox Coping Need and Detox Work Satisfaction Need. The scale demonstrated high internal consistency (α = 0.864). The scale offers a reliable and robust instrument for assessing digital detox needs and helping to enhance teachers’ well-being in the educational environment for counsellors and educational psychologists.