4-STEP-Training Program for Doomscrolling, Cyberchondriac Behavior and Psychiatric Symptoms (4-STEP-TPS) Among Individuals With Social Media Addiction ((4-STEP-TPS))
17 de junio de 2026 actualizado por: Qasir Abbas, Government College University Faisalabad
Effectiveness of 4-Step Training Program for Doomscrolling, Cyberchondriac Behavior and Psychiatric Symptoms Among Individuals With Social Media Addiction: A Randomized Trial
The goal of this clinical trial is to evaluate the effectiveness of the 4-Step Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS) in reducing social media addiction, doomscrolling, cyberchondriac behavior, depressive symptoms, and health anxiety among young adults.
The study aims to promote healthier digital habits, psychological well-being, and improved daily functioning.
Participants with elevated social media addiction will complete a 4-week intervention with one session per week.
They will be randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a waitlist control group.
Pre- and post-intervention assessments will be conducted to determine the program's effectiveness.
Descripción general del estudio
Estado
Aún no reclutando
Intervención / Tratamiento
Descripción detallada
In this research, a sample of approximately N = 300 young adults will be initially enrolled for eligibility screening from public and private universities in Faisalabad and Sahiwal, Pakistan, using purposive sampling techniques. Participants will be aged between 18 and 28 years and will have no history of severe physical, psychiatric, or psychological disorders. After eligibility assessment and screening based on standardized measures, N = 80 participants will be selected and randomly allocated to the experimental and waitlist control groups.
This study is expected to provide valuable evidence for mental health practitioners regarding effective interventions for managing social media addiction among young adults. The 4-STEP Training Program is anticipated to enhance participants' awareness and understanding of problematic digital behaviors, including doomscrolling and cyberchondriac behavior. The intervention is also expected to reduce depressive symptoms and health anxiety, improve self-regulation and promote healthier digital habits. Furthermore, the program is expected to enhance psychological well-being, academic functioning, and overall productivity while significantly reducing levels of social media addiction.
Tipo de estudio
Intervencionista
Inscripción (Estimado)
80
Fase
- No aplica
Contactos y Ubicaciones
Esta sección proporciona los datos de contacto de quienes realizan el estudio e información sobre dónde se lleva a cabo este estudio.
Estudio Contacto
- Nombre: Qasir Abbas, PhD Clinical Psychology
- Número de teléfono: 923337683133
- Correo electrónico: qasirabbas47@yahoo.com
Copia de seguridad de contactos de estudio
- Nombre: Atika Shafi, MS Clinical Psychology
Ubicaciones de estudio
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Punjab Province
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Faisalabad, Punjab Province, Pakistán, 38000
- Government College University Faisalabad
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Contacto:
- Qasir Abbas, PhD Clinical Psychology
- Número de teléfono: 923337683133
- Correo electrónico: qasirabbas47@yahoo.com
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Criterios de participación
Los investigadores buscan personas que se ajusten a una determinada descripción, denominada criterio de elegibilidad. Algunos ejemplos de estos criterios son el estado de salud general de una persona o tratamientos previos.
Criterio de elegibilidad
Edades elegibles para estudiar
- Adulto
Acepta Voluntarios Saludables
Sí
Descripción
Inclusion Criteria:
- Age range: 18-29 years
- No physical, psychiatric, or psychological conditions
- Minimum score of 84 on the Social Networking Addiction Scale (SNAS)
- Minimum score of 23 on the Cyberchondria Severity Scale (CSS-12)
Exclusion Criteria:
- Age below 18 or above 29 years
- Presence of any physical, psychiatric, or psychological conditions
- Score below 84 on the Social Networking Addiction Scale (SNAS)
- Score below 23 on the Cyberchondria Severity Scale (CSS-12)
Plan de estudios
Esta sección proporciona detalles del plan de estudio, incluido cómo está diseñado el estudio y qué mide el estudio.
¿Cómo está diseñado el estudio?
Detalles de diseño
- Propósito principal: Tratamiento
- Asignación: Aleatorizado
- Modelo Intervencionista: Asignación paralela
- Enmascaramiento: Ninguno (etiqueta abierta)
Armas e Intervenciones
Grupo de participantes/brazo |
Intervención / Tratamiento |
|---|---|
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Sin intervención: Grupo de control
Sin intervención
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Experimental: Grupo experimental: entorno individual
Programa de entrenamiento de 4 PASOS en un entorno 1-1
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4 Modules with 1 Module being delivered in 1 weekly session of approximately 90 minutes.
The details of each module/step is described as follows: Step 1 (Module 1): S = Screening, Assessment and Psychoeducation: Involves screening and assessment of the problem, interpretation of the results, feedback and psychoeducation, identifying and breaking the resistance, motivation, and conceptualization.
Step 2 (Module 2): T = Treatment Conceptualization and Planning: Involves pattern identification, distortion identification, as well as pattern and distortions modifications.
Step 3 (Module 3): E = Effective Management Strategies: Involves management strategies to treat the earlier identified patterns as well as the implementation and confirmation of activities via a Pattern Schedule Chart.
Step 4 (Module 4): P = Prevention (Lapse-Relapse): Involves self-reflection and support building, monitoring and dependency check and slip plans and support additions
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¿Qué mide el estudio?
Medidas de resultado primarias
Medida de resultado |
Medida Descripción |
Periodo de tiempo |
|---|---|---|
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Escala de adicción a las redes sociales (SNAS)
Periodo de tiempo: En el cribado, después de 4 semanas, y en la reevaluación hasta los 6 meses.
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La Escala de Adicción a las Redes Sociales (SNAS) se desarrolló para medir la adicción a todas las formas de redes sociales en seis dimensiones: prominencia (ítems 1 a 4), modificación del estado de ánimo (ítems 5 a 7), tolerancia (ítems 8 a 10), abstinencia ( ítems 11-14), conflicto (ítems 15-17) y recaída (ítems 18-21) (Shahnawaz & Rehman, 2020).
La SNAS es una escala autoinformada que consta de 21 ítems calificados en una escala Likert de 7 puntos que van desde 1 (muy en desacuerdo) a 7 (muy de acuerdo).
La puntuación puede oscilar entre 21 y 147.
Cualquier puntuación superior a una puntuación total de 84 significa adicción.
La escala ha demostrado una buena confiabilidad test-retest de 0,88 y buena validez, según lo informado por Shahnawaz y Rehman (2020).
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En el cribado, después de 4 semanas, y en la reevaluación hasta los 6 meses.
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Cyberchondria Severity Scale (CSS-12)
Periodo de tiempo: At screening, after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
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The Cyberchondria Severity Scale-12 (CSS-12), developed by Eoin McElroy et al. (2019), is a 12-item self-report measure assessing excessive, anxiety-provoking online health searches across four dimensions: compulsion, distress, excessiveness, and reassurance-seeking.
Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Never to 5 = Always), with total scores ranging from 12-60; higher scores indicate greater cyberchondria.
The scale is brief, reliable, and valid, suitable for both clinical and non-clinical populations, and widely used to evaluate problematic health-related online behavior.
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At screening, after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
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Doomscrolling Scale (DS)
Periodo de tiempo: At screening, after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
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The Doomscrolling Scale was developed to assess compulsive engagement with negative online news content and excessive scrolling behavior, particularly during times of crisis (Sharma et al., 2022).
The scale measures three core dimensions: obsessive news consumption, emotional distress, and behavioral compulsion.
It is a self-report instrument consisting of 15 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (always).
The total score is calculated by summing all item responses, with higher scores indicating greater levels of doomscrolling behavior.
The scale has demonstrated good internal consistency (Cronbach's α = 0.88) and satisfactory construct validity (Sharma et al., 2022).
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At screening, after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
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Short Health Anxiety Inventory (SHAI)
Periodo de tiempo: At screening, after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
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The Short Health Anxiety Inventory (SHAI) was developed to assess health-related anxiety and preoccupation with physical symptoms, independent of actual medical status (Salkovskis et al., 2002).
The scale measures two main dimensions: perceived likelihood of illness and perceived negative consequences of illness.
It is a self-report instrument consisting of 18 items, each presenting four response options scored from 0 to 3, reflecting increasing levels of health anxiety.
Total scores range from 0 to 54, with higher scores indicating greater levels of health anxiety.
The SHAI has demonstrated excellent internal consistency, with reported Cronbach's alpha values ranging from 0.86 to 0.95, and strong convergent and construct validity.
The HAI is a reliable and valid measure of health anxiety (Salkovskis et al., 2002).
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At screening, after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
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Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9)
Periodo de tiempo: At screening, after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
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The Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) was developed to measure the severity of depressive symptoms based on the diagnostic criteria of major depressive disorder (Kroenke et al., 2001).
The scale assesses nine core symptoms of depression, including low mood, loss of interest, fatigue, sleep disturbances, appetite changes, concentration difficulties, feelings of worthlessness, psychomotor changes, and suicidal ideation.
The PHQ-9 is a self-report instrument consisting of 9 items rated on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 0 (not at all) to 3 (nearly every day).
Total scores range from 0 to 27, with higher scores indicating greater severity of depressive symptoms.
The Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) is a self-administered version of the PRIME-MD diagnostic instrument for common mental disorders(The PHQ-9 - Kroenke - 2001 - Journal of General Internal Medicine - Wiley Online Library, 2001).
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At screening, after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months
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Colaboradores e Investigadores
Aquí es donde encontrará personas y organizaciones involucradas en este estudio.
Patrocinador
Investigadores
- Investigador principal: Qasir Abbas, PhD Clinical Psychology, Government College University Faisalabad
Fechas de registro del estudio
Estas fechas rastrean el progreso del registro del estudio y los envíos de resultados resumidos a ClinicalTrials.gov. Los registros del estudio y los resultados informados son revisados por la Biblioteca Nacional de Medicina (NLM) para asegurarse de que cumplan con los estándares de control de calidad específicos antes de publicarlos en el sitio web público.
Fechas importantes del estudio
Inicio del estudio (Estimado)
5 de julio de 2026
Finalización primaria (Estimado)
10 de septiembre de 2026
Finalización del estudio (Estimado)
30 de septiembre de 2026
Fechas de registro del estudio
Enviado por primera vez
17 de junio de 2026
Primero enviado que cumplió con los criterios de control de calidad
17 de junio de 2026
Publicado por primera vez (Actual)
23 de junio de 2026
Actualizaciones de registros de estudio
Última actualización publicada (Actual)
23 de junio de 2026
Última actualización enviada que cumplió con los criterios de control de calidad
17 de junio de 2026
Última verificación
1 de febrero de 2026
Más información
Términos relacionados con este estudio
Palabras clave
Términos MeSH relevantes adicionales
Otros números de identificación del estudio
- GCUF_CT_STP
Plan de datos de participantes individuales (IPD)
¿Planea compartir datos de participantes individuales (IPD)?
NO
Información sobre medicamentos y dispositivos, documentos del estudio
Estudia un producto farmacéutico regulado por la FDA de EE. UU.
No
Estudia un producto de dispositivo regulado por la FDA de EE. UU.
No
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