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

NCT07564115 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: GCUF.FS.TPS
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 80
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

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.

Conditions

4-STEP-Training Program for Social Media Addiction

Keywords

4-STEP-Training Program,Social Networkong, Flourishing, Insomnia, Fatigue, Psychological Problems

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (6)

• Social Networking Addiction Scale (SNAS, Shahnawaz & Rehman, 2020)

  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)

  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)

  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)

  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)

  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)

  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

Study Arms (2)

1st Arm ( 1-Experimental)

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.

Behavioral: 4-STEP-Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS)

2nd Arm ( Waitlist Control Condition )

NO INTERVENTION

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.

Interventions

4-STEP-Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS) BEHAVIORAL

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

1st Arm ( 1-Experimental)

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 13 Years - 18 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64)

You may qualify if:

• 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

You may not qualify if:

• 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

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Government College University Faisalabad: lead

Study Sites (1)

Government College University Faisalabad

Faisalabad, Punjab Province, 38000, Pakistan

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders; Fatigue

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Sleep Disorders, Intrinsic; Dyssomnias; Sleep Wake Disorders; Nervous System Diseases; Mental Disorders; Signs and Symptoms; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Study Officials

• Qasir Abbas Qasir Abbas, PhD Clinical Psychology

  Government College University Faisalabad

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

Qasir Abbas Qasir Abbas, PhD Clinical Psychology

CONTACT

923337683133; drqasirabbas@gcuf.edu.pk

Fazilat mehmood Fazilat mehmood, MS Clinical Psychology

CONTACT

fazilatmehmood084@gmail.com

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Tenured Associate Professor-Clinical Psychology

Model Details: The present study will be based on an experimental research model using a pre-test-post-test control group design to evaluate the effectiveness of the 4-STEP Training Program for Social Media Addiction (4-STEP-TPS). In this model, the independent variable will be the 4-STEP Training Program, while the dependent variables will include social media addiction, psychological well-being (flourishing), depression, anxiety, stress, fatigue, insomnia, family relationships, and academic productivity.Adolescents will be randomly assigned to either an experimental group, which will receive the intervention, or a waitlist control group, which will not receive the intervention during the study period. Both groups will be assessed at pre-test (before the intervention) and post-test (after the intervention) to examine changes over time. The model will assume that participation in the 4-STEP program will lead to a reduction in social media addiction and psychological distress, along with improvements

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 27, 2026
• First Posted: May 4, 2026
• Study Start (Estimated): May 20, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 25, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): September 2, 2026
• Last Updated: May 4, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-04

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

PA (1)