The Use of Social Media and Its Relationship with Mental Health among Youth

Abstract

The current study aims to assess the level of social media use among youth, the level of mental health within the study sample, and the significance of statistical differences in social media use and mental health based on variables (gender, age, duration of social media use). Additionally, it seeks to explore the relationship between social media use and mental health among youth. The study population consists of youth in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, with a simple random sample of 312 individuals selected. The researcher developed a social media usage scale comprising 20 items; after verifying face validity and discrimination power, one item was removed, resulting in a final scale of 19 items. The researcher also used the (Leonard, R. Derogatis, S. Lehman, and Lenore Kovi) mental health scale, initially consisting of 90 items, from which 20 items were removed, resulting in a final scale of 70 items. The researcher employed the split-half method to determine reliability, resulting in a reliability coefficient of 0.79 for the social media usage scale, which increased to 0.88 after correction with the Spearman-Brown formula. The mental health scale showed a reliability coefficient of 0.94, which increased to 0.97 after correction. The findings revealed that the sample displayed high social media use and lower-than-average mental health levels, with no statistically significant differences in social media use or mental health based on gender or age. However, significant differences were found in favor of youth who use social media for less than an hour.