Examining the Relationship Between Social Media Addiction and Well-Being: A Meta-Analysis Study

The increase in social media use can affect individuals well-being levels. Therefore, this study evaluated studies on the relationship between social media addiction and well-being in Turkey by meta-analysis. In addition, the study aimed to determine the variables that may have a moderating effect on this relationship. In this context, a literature review covering 2010-2024 was conducted using the YÖK Thesis Center, ULAKBIM TR Index and Google Scholar databases. As a result of the review, 19 studies (13 theses, 6 articles) that met the inclusion criteria and reported Pearson Correlation coefficient (r) were included in the analysis. Publication bias, heterogeneity and overall effect size were calculated; no publication bias was detected as a result of the analysis. Since there was a high level of heterogeneity among the analyzed studies (I²=97.384%), the random effects model was used to calculate the average effect size. The average effect size was calculated with the random effects model and an inverse, low-level relationship was found between social media addiction and wellbeing (r̅ = -0.284). In moderator analyses determined that the publication type variable and the sample group had no significant effect on this relationship. The findings were evaluated within the framework of the existing literature.