Age and Perceived Social Media Addiction as predictors of the Desire for Attention

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Fatima Zehra Allahverdi

Abstract

Social media platforms, utilized by many, is a topic of interest for researchers. Similarly, narcissism, which has a relationship with social media addiction is also of interest. The current study examined the relationship between perceived social media addiction, age/year, and a specific aspect of narcissism, attention-seeking desire. This is the first study to the best of the researcher’s knowledge that has examined the variables in conjunction and has examined students from the Middle East, specifically, a Gulf country. Perceived social media addiction was divided into low, medium, and high. Although previous studies examined age with narcissistic tendencies, such as attention-seeking behavior, the current study looked at smaller age ranges, with each age range corresponding to a specific university year (Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, Senior). Results indicated that although perceived social media addiction was not a significant predictor of attention-seeking desire, Freshman students were five times more likely to define themselves as attention-seeking compared to Senior year students. This finding may be due to the age difference between the two years, or it may be related to the transitions that students in these years are experiencing.

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