Change in Social Media Use and Well-being Among College Students Receiving a One-week Exercise or Mindfulness Intervention

NCT06143852 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: IRB00025926
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 140
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The investigators will be randomizing 150 college student participants with high levels of social media use into either a 1) control condition (no intervention), a 2) mindfulness meditation cognitive intervention, or 3) a social media reduction + exercise replacement intervention. Participants complete intervention activities daily for one week. The investigators will collect self-report and behavioral measures of social media use and related psychological constructs at three time points: baseline, immediately after the intervention period, and one-week after the intervention period.

Conditions

Social Media Addiction; Depression, Anxiety; Well-Being, Psychological

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (6)

• Change in Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 (DASS-21)

  Score range = 0-63, higher score = worse outcome

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQoL-BREF) scale

  Score range = 13-65, lower score = worse outcome

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in Smartphone screen time (minutes) for social media use

  Past-week amount of screen time for social media use

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in Number of Social media use smartphone pick-ups

  Past-week total number of smartphone pick-ups for social media use applications

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in Percent of time using social media

  Past-week percent of time using social media compared to other smartphone application categories.

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in Social media use notifications received

  Past-week total number of notifications received for social media use applications

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

Secondary Outcomes (8)

• Change in University of California, Los Angeles 3-Item Loneliness Scale

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in The Gratitude Questionnaire, 6-item form (GQ-6) scale

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in Motivations for Electronic Interaction Scale (MEIS)

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in Comprehensive Assessment of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Processes (CompACT-15) scale

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

• Change in Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS)

  baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week

Study Arms (3)

Control

NO INTERVENTION

Participants will not receive an intervention. They will receive instructions to use their social media use as usual.

Mindfulness

EXPERIMENTAL

Approximately 12-minute mindfulness-style meditations will be completed daily for one week through the Calm platform. Participants can listen to the exercise on the web-enabled version of Calm, or through the smartphone app. The course is entitled "7 Days of Gratitude" and centers around noticing and appreciating things in daily life.

Behavioral: Mindfulness

Social Media Reduction + Exercise

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants will reduce their social media use by at least 30 minutes daily for one week. Simultaneously, participants will exercise at least 30 minutes daily. Participants are given examples of common exercises (walking, yoga, strength training, etc.), but they are allowed to choose any type, although they are dissuaded from activities with high potential for injury.

Behavioral: Social Media Reduction + Exercise

Interventions

Mindfulness BEHAVIORAL

12 minute daily guided meditation

Mindfulness

Social Media Reduction + Exercise BEHAVIORAL

Reduce social media use at least 30 minutes daily and exercise instead

Social Media Reduction + Exercise

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• The participant is 18 or older.
• The participant must be a Johns Hopkins University student.
• Owning an iPhone or Android smartphone, with frequent use of social media use daily (\> 1 hour)
• Enabling and sharing screenshots of your smartphone use metrics, including number of last-week pickups, notifications received, and average screen time.
• Providing consent to participate.
• Only exercising 1 hour or less daily, on average.

You may not qualify if:

• younger than 18
• Not a Johns Hopkins University Student
• Doesn't own a smart phone
• Uses smartphone less than 1 hour daily
• Exercises more than 1 hour daily

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health: lead

Study Sites (1)

Johns Hopkins University

Baltimore, Maryland, 21218, United States

Location

Related Publications (9)

• Hanley SM, Watt SE, Coventry W. Taking a break: The effect of taking a vacation from Facebook and Instagram on subjective well-being. PLoS One. 2019 Jun 6;14(6):e0217743. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0217743. eCollection 2019.

  PMID: 31170206 BACKGROUND

• Hou, Y., Xiong, D., Jiang, T., Song, L., & Wang, Q. (2019). Social media addiction: Its impact, mediation, and intervention. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 13(1), article 4.

  BACKGROUND

• Hunt, M. G., Marx, R., Lipson, C., & Young, J. (2018). No more FOMO: Limiting social media decreases loneliness and depression. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 37(10), 751-768.

  BACKGROUND

• Lambert J, Barnstable G, Minter E, Cooper J, McEwan D. Taking a One-Week Break from Social Media Improves Well-Being, Depression, and Anxiety: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw. 2022 May;25(5):287-293. doi: 10.1089/cyber.2021.0324. Epub 2022 May 3.

  PMID: 35512731 BACKGROUND

• Roberts TA, Daniels EA, Weaver JM, Zanovitch LS. "Intermission!" A short-term social media fast reduces self-objectification among pre-teen and teen dancers. Body Image. 2022 Dec;43:125-133. doi: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2022.08.015. Epub 2022 Sep 21.

  PMID: 36152479 BACKGROUND

• van Wezel MMC, Abrahamse EL, Vanden Abeele MMP. Does a 7-day restriction on the use of social media improve cognitive functioning and emotional well-being? Results from a randomized controlled trial. Addict Behav Rep. 2021 Jun 15;14:100365. doi: 10.1016/j.abrep.2021.100365. eCollection 2021 Dec.

  PMID: 34938826 BACKGROUND

• Vanman EJ, Baker R, Tobin SJ. The burden of online friends: the effects of giving up Facebook on stress and well-being. J Soc Psychol. 2018;158(4):496-507. doi: 10.1080/00224545.2018.1453467. Epub 2018 Apr 9.

  PMID: 29558267 BACKGROUND

• Nicuță, E.G., Constantin, T. Take Nothing for Granted: Downward Social Comparison and Counterfactual Thinking Increase Adolescents' State Gratitude for the Little Things in Life. J Happiness Stud 22, 3543-3570 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-021-00382-5.

  BACKGROUND

• Hall, J.A., Xing, C., Ross. E.M., Johnson, R.M. Experimentally manipulating social media abstinence: results of a four-week diary study. Media Psychology, 2019; 24, 259 - 275

  RESULT

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Internet Addiction Disorder; Depression; Anxiety Disorders; Psychological Well-Being

Interventions

Mindfulness; Exercise

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Technology Addiction; Behavior, Addictive; Compulsive Behavior; Impulsive Behavior; Behavior; Behavioral Symptoms; Mental Disorders; Personal Satisfaction

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; Behavior Therapy; Psychotherapy; Behavioral Disciplines and Activities; Motor Activity; Movement; Musculoskeletal Physiological Phenomena; Musculoskeletal and Neural Physiological Phenomena

Study Officials

• Johannes Thrul

  Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Masking Details: Both participants and investigators will know which intervention group each participant has been randomized into.
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: Three groups of 1) no intervention, 2) mindfulness, or 3) social media reduction + exercise replacement intervention arms

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: November 14, 2023
• First Posted: November 22, 2023
• Study Start: February 7, 2024
• Primary Completion: December 11, 2024
• Study Completion: December 11, 2024
• Last Updated: May 31, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-05

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share

Locations

US (1)