Predictors of problematic social media use among university students: The roles of escapism, social connectedness, and psychological resilience

This study aimed to identify the psychological and behavioral predictors of problematic social media use (PSMU) among university students, focusing on escapism, social connectedness, online disinhibition, perceived social support, and psychological resilience. A cross-sectional design was used. Data were collected online from 515 university students aged 18–30 years (74.8% female; mean age 21.0±2.4 years). PSMU was assessed with the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS), with risk status defined by the established cut-off score of ≥19. Escapism, social connectedness, perceived social support, psychological resilience, online disinhibition (benign and toxic), and daily social media use were examined as predictors in binary logistic regression (risk status) and linear regression (continuous score) models, adjusting for age and gender; discriminative ability was evaluated using ROC analysis. In total, 40.2% of participants were classified as being at risk for PSMU. Both models explained substantial variance (Nagelkerke R²=0.30, AUC=0.78; linear R²=0.33). Escapism was the strongest predictor in both models (OR=1.75, 95% CI [1.39–2.21]; B=2.13; both p<0.001), followed by daily use duration and low social connectedness. Psychological resilience was a significant protective factor (OR=0.79; B=−0.72). Benign online disinhibition predicted PSMU risk status but not the continuous score; toxic disinhibition, perceived social support, age, and gender were not significant. Among university students, PSMU risk is most strongly associated with escapism-motivated use, whereas psychological resilience plays a protective role. Prevention and intervention efforts in higher education settings should prioritize reducing escapism-driven use and strengthening psychological resilience to support students' mental health and academic functioning.