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The Effectiveness of 4-STEP-Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS) and Psychological Problems Among Adolescence (4-STEP-TPS)

27 april 2026 bijgewerkt door: Qasir Abbas, Government College University Faisalabad

Effectiveness of 4-Step-Training Program for Social Media Addiction(4-STEP-TPS) and Psychological Problems Among Adolescence: A Randomezed Control Trial.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of the 4-STEP Training Program in reducing social media addiction and improving psychological well-being among adolescents. Increasing use of social media has been linked with anxiety, depression, stress, sleep problems, low self-esteem, and reduced academic performance, particularly among adolescents who are more vulnerable to social comparison, fear of missing out, and reliance on online validation. To address this issue, a structured intervention integrating psychoeducation, cognitive-behavioral techniques, and relapse prevention strategies is implemented. The study will involve adolescents aged 13-18 years from private schools and colleges, selected based on standardized cut-off scores for social media addiction and low flourishing. The effectiveness of the program will be assessed by comparing experimental and control groups using validated psychological measures. It is expected that the intervention will significantly reduce social media addiction and psychological distress while improving emotional regulation, flourishing, and academic functioning.

Studie Overzicht

Toestand

Nog niet aan het werven

Conditie

Interventie / Behandeling

Gedetailleerde beschrijving

The present study focuses on the growing concern of social media addiction among adolescents and its associated psychological consequences. In this research the study will be conducted on adolescents aged 13 to 18 years from selected private schools and colleges. A sample of approximately N=120 participants initially enrolled and will be screened out using standardized criteria, including scores above the cut-off on the Social Networking Addiction Scale and below the cut-off on the Secure Flourish Index. After eligibility assessment and screening based on standardised measure N=80 participants will be randomly assigned to either an experimental group receiving the intervention or a waitlist control group. Data will be collected using validated psychological scales measuring social media addiction, flourishing, anxiety, depression, stress, fatigue, insomnia, family relationships, and academic productivity.

The effectiveness of the intervention will be assessed by comparing pre- and post-intervention outcomes between the two groups using statistical analysis. It is expected that the 4-STEP Training Program will significantly reduce problematic social media use and psychological distress while enhancing emotional regulation, psychological well-being, academic engagement, and overall functioning among adolescents. This study is intended to contribute to the development of practical, structured, and evidence-based interventions for managing social media addiction in youth populations.

To address this growing issue, the study introduces the 4-STEP Training Program, a structured and evidence-based intervention designed to reduce social media addiction and improve psychological functioning. The program integrates four key components: screening and psychoeducation, treatment planning and cognitive-behavioral strategies, effective behavioral management techniques, and relapse prevention. These components aim to help adolescents identify maladaptive thoughts and behaviors related to social media use, develop healthier coping strategies, and build long-term self-regulation skills.

Studietype

Ingrijpend

Inschrijving (Geschat)

80

Fase

  • Niet toepasbaar

Contacten en locaties

In dit gedeelte vindt u de contactgegevens van degenen die het onderzoek uitvoeren en informatie over waar dit onderzoek wordt uitgevoerd.

Studiecontact

  • Naam: Qasir Abbas Qasir Abbas, PhD Clinical Psychology
  • Telefoonnummer: 10245 923337683133
  • E-mail: drqasirabbas@gcuf.edu.pk

Studie Contact Back-up

Studie Locaties

  • Pakistan
    • Punjab Province
      • Faisalabad, Punjab Province, Pakistan, 38000
        • Government College University Faisalabad
        • Contact:

Deelname Criteria

Onderzoekers zoeken naar mensen die aan een bepaalde beschrijving voldoen, de zogenaamde geschiktheidscriteria. Enkele voorbeelden van deze criteria zijn iemands algemene gezondheidstoestand of eerdere behandelingen.

Geschiktheidscriteria

Leeftijden die in aanmerking komen voor studie

  • Kind
  • Volwassen

Accepteert gezonde vrijwilligers

Ja

Beschrijving

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Adolescents aged 13-18 years
  • Individuals reporting moderate to high levels of social media addiction (based on standardized scale cut-off, e.g., BSMAS/SNAS)
  • Regular social media users with an average daily usage of 4 hours or more
  • Willingness to participate with informed consent and parental consent

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Adolescents who do not meet the inclusion criteria
  • Diagnosed with severe psychiatric disorders (e.g., psychosis, severe depression)
  • Currently receiving psychological or psychiatric treatment for addiction-related problems
  • Presence of serious physical or neurological conditions
  • Individuals who are not regular social media users
  • Participants who fail to complete pre-test or post-test assessments

Studie plan

Dit gedeelte bevat details van het studieplan, inclusief hoe de studie is opgezet en wat de studie meet.

Hoe is de studie opgezet?

Ontwerpdetails

  • Primair doel: Behandeling
  • Toewijzing: Gerandomiseerd
  • Interventioneel model: Parallelle opdracht
  • Masker: Geen (open label)

Wapens en interventies

Deelnemersgroep / Arm
Interventie / Behandeling
Experimenteel: 1st Arm ( 1-Experimental)
Participants in the experimental group will receive the 4-STEP Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS). The intervention consists of four sequential phases: (1) screening, assessment, and psychoeducation, (2) treatment conceptualization and planning, (3) effective management strategies including cognitive-behavioral and self-regulation techniques, and (4) relapse prevention. Each phase includes structured sessions (90 minutes each) delivered over a period of four weeks in an individualized format. The program aims to reduce social media addiction and improve psychological well-being, sleep patterns, and academic functioning.
Gedragsmatig: 4-STEP-Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS)
The 4-STEP Training Program (4-STEP-TPS) is distinguished from existing interventions by its structured, multi-component, and individualized approach specifically designed for adolescent social media addiction. Unlike traditional interventions that often rely on a single method such as psychoeducation or cognitive-behavioral therapy alone, this program integrates psychoeducation, case conceptualization, cognitive-behavioral techniques, self-regulation strategies, and relapse prevention within a sequential four-step framework. It is delivered on an individual basis, allowing personalized goal-setting and intervention planning according to each participant's social media use patterns and psychological needs. Additionally, the program incorporates continuous self-monitoring and behavioral tracking to enhance awareness and control over usage behaviors. Another key feature is its holistic focus, addressing not only addiction but also related outcomes such as psychological distress, sleep pr
Geen tussenkomst: 2nd Arm ( Waitlist Control Condition )
Participants in the waitlist control group will not receive the intervention during the study period. They will continue their routine activities without any structured treatment. However, after completion of the study and post-assessment, they will be offered the 4-STEP Training Program. This group serves as a comparison to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention.

Wat meet het onderzoek?

Primaire uitkomstmaten

Uitkomstmaat
Maatregel Beschrijving
Tijdsspanne
Social Networking Addiction Scale (SNAS, Shahnawaz & Rehman, 2020)
Tijdsspanne: At Screening , after 4 weeks, and re-assessment upto 6-months
The Social Networking Addiction Scale (SNAS) was developed to measure addiction of all forms of social networking across six-dimensions salience (items 1-4), mood modification (items 5-7), tolerance (items 8-10), withdrawal (items 11-14), conflict (item 1517), and relapse (items 18-21) (Shahnawaz & Rehman, 2020). The SNAS is a 21-item self-reported scale rated on a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The score can range from 21 to 147. Any total score above 84 indicates addiction. The scale has demonstrated good test-retest reliability (0.88) and good validity, as reported by Shahnawaz and Rehman (2020).
At Screening , after 4 weeks, and re-assessment upto 6-months
Secure Flourish Index (SFI, Weziak-Bialowolska et al., 2017)
Tijdsspanne: At Screening after 4 weeks and reassessment upto 6 months
The Secure Flourish Index (SFI) was developed to measure long-term flourishing across 6 domains happiness and life satisfaction (items 1-2), physical and mental health (items 3-4), meaning and purpose (items 5-6), character and virtue (items 7-8), close social relationships (items 9-10), and financial and material stability (items 11-12) (WeziakBialowolska et al., 2017). It is a self-report scale with 2 items per domain, totaling 12 items, rated on a 0-10 scale. Total scores range from 0 to 120, with higher scores indicating greater flourishing. It has an internal consistency of 0.85 and good construct validity (Weziak-Bialowolska et al., 2017).
At Screening after 4 weeks and reassessment upto 6 months
Fatigue Assessment Scale (FAS, Michielsen et al., 2003)
Tijdsspanne: At Screening, after 4, weeks and re-assessment upto 6-months
The Fatigue Assessment Scale (FAS) was developed to evaluate the physical and mental symptoms of fatigue (Michielsen et al., 2003). It is a self-report measure with 10 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (always). The scale has 2 subscales: mental fatigue, measured by the sum of items 3, 6, 7, 8, and 9, and physical fatigue, measured by the sum of items 1, 2, 4, 5, and 10. Items 4 and 10 are reverse-scored. The total scores range from 10 (lowest level of fatigue) to 50 (highest level of fatigue). The scale has an internal consistency of 0.90 and good validity (Michielsen et al., 2003).
At Screening, after 4, weeks and re-assessment upto 6-months
Insomnia Severity Index (ISI, Bastien et al., 2001)
Tijdsspanne: At Screening , after 4 weeks, and re-assessment upto 6-months
The Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) was developed as a screening measure for insomnia as well as an outcome measure in treatment research (Bastien et al., 2001). It is a self-report measure with 7 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 to 4. The total score ranges from 0 to 28, with higher scores indicating more severe insomnia symptoms. Although not validated, the developers suggest cutoff scores to be used for interpretation, with total scores of 0-7 indicating "no clinically significant insomnia," scores between 8-14 indicating "subthreshold insomnia," scores between 15-21 indicating "clinical insomnia (moderate severity)," and scores in the range 22-28 indicating "clinical insomnia (severe)." The scale has an internal consistency of 0.74 (Bastien et al., 2001).
At Screening , after 4 weeks, and re-assessment upto 6-months
Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales (DASS, Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995)
Tijdsspanne: At Screening, after 4 week and re-assessment upto 6 months
The DASS-21 is the shortened version of the DASS-42 and was designed to measure the symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress (Lovibond & Lovibond, 1995). It is a self-report measure with 21 items rated on a 4-point Likert scale (0-3). Each of the three DASS-21 scales, depression (items 3, 5, 10, 13, 16, 17, 21), anxiety (items 2, 4, 7, 9, 15, 19, 20), and stress (items 1, 6, 8, 11, 12, 14, 18), contains 7 items. The scale has good internal consistency and construct validity in both clinical and non-clinical samples (Antony et al., 1998). Scores on the DASS-21 must be multiplied by 2 to obtain the final score. After obtaining the final score for each depression, anxiety, and stress, the final score is compared to the recommended cut-off scores for severity labels (normal, moderate, severe).
At Screening, after 4 week and re-assessment upto 6 months
The Brief Family Relationship Scale (BFRS, Fok, Allen, Henry, 2014)
Tijdsspanne: After Screening, 4 weeks and re-asessment upto 6 months
The Brief Family Relationship Scale (BFRS) was proposed and validated by Fok, Allen, Henry, and the People Awakening Team (2014). This 16-item instrument was specifically adapted from the Relationship dimension of the original Family Environment Scale (FES) developed by Moos and Moos (1994). By refining the original 27-item. By developing a 16-item measure of the relationship dimension, the authors provided a practical and efficient way to assess three core components of family functioning: Cohesion, Expressiveness, and Conflict. This scale is particularly valued in research involving adolescent populations, as it offers a reliable assessment of the family environment while remaining brief enough for use in large-scale community and clinical studies (Fok et al., 2014; Moos & Moos, 1994).
After Screening, 4 weeks and re-asessment upto 6 months

Medewerkers en onderzoekers

Hier vindt u mensen en organisaties die betrokken zijn bij dit onderzoek.

Sponsor

Government College University Faisalabad

Onderzoekers

  • Hoofdonderzoeker: Qasir Abbas Qasir Abbas, PhD Clinical Psychology, Government College University Faisalabad

Studie record data

Deze datums volgen de voortgang van het onderzoeksdossier en de samenvatting van de ingediende resultaten bij ClinicalTrials.gov. Studieverslagen en gerapporteerde resultaten worden beoordeeld door de National Library of Medicine (NLM) om er zeker van te zijn dat ze voldoen aan specifieke kwaliteitscontrolenormen voordat ze op de openbare website worden geplaatst.

Bestudeer belangrijke data

Studie start (Geschat)

20 mei 2026

Primaire voltooiing (Geschat)

25 augustus 2026

Studie voltooiing (Geschat)

2 september 2026

Studieregistratiedata

Eerst ingediend

27 april 2026

Eerst ingediend dat voldeed aan de QC-criteria

27 april 2026

Eerst geplaatst (Werkelijk)

4 mei 2026

Updates van studierecords

Laatste update geplaatst (Werkelijk)

4 mei 2026

Laatste update ingediend die voldeed aan QC-criteria

27 april 2026

Laatst geverifieerd

1 april 2026

Meer informatie

Termen gerelateerd aan deze studie

Trefwoorden

Aanvullende relevante MeSH-voorwaarden

Andere studie-ID-nummers

  • GCUF.FS.TPS

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NEE

Informatie over medicijnen en apparaten, studiedocumenten

Bestudeert een door de Amerikaanse FDA gereguleerd geneesmiddel

Nee

Bestudeert een door de Amerikaanse FDA gereguleerd apparaatproduct

Nee

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