Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Nov 25;16(23):4696.
doi: 10.3390/ijerph16234696.

A 'Control Model' of Social Media Engagement in Adolescence: A Grounded Theory Analysis

Melina A Throuvala  1 , Mark D Griffiths  1 , Mike Rennoldson  2 , Daria J Kuss  1
Affiliations

A 'Control Model' of Social Media Engagement in Adolescence: A Grounded Theory Analysis

Melina A Throuvala et al. Int J Environ Res Public Health. .

Abstract

Adolescents actively use social media, which engages them cognitively, emotionally, and behaviorally. However, the underlying psychological mechanisms of engagement have not been adequately addressed. The present study examined adolescents' psychological processes as these develop in their everyday interactions via social media. The sample comprised six focus groups with 42 adolescents from UK-based schools. Data were analyzed using constructivist grounded theory. The resulting concepts related to individual, social, and structurally related processes, highlighting a synergy between the processes underlying use and a gradual reduction of control as individual, social, and structurally led processes emerge, conceptualized as the 'control model' of social media engagement. The findings highlight a controlling aspect in engagement and a dynamic interplay between the processes as mutually determining the quality and the intensity of the interaction. Recommendations are provided for examining control as a main emotional, cognitive, and behavioral mechanism in problematic and/or addictive social media and smartphone use.

Keywords: adolescent smartphone use; adolescent social media use; problematic social media use; smartphone addiction; social media addiction.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The ‘control model’ of engagement.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Kuss D.J., Griffiths M.D. Excessive online social networking: Can adolescents become addicted to Facebook? Educ. Health. 2011;29:68–71.
    1. Griffiths M.D. Adolescent social networking: How do social media operators facilitate habitual use? Educ. Health. 2018;36:66–69.
    1. Throuvala M.A., Griffiths M.D., Rennoldson M., Kuss D.J. Motivational processes and dysfunctional mechanisms of social media use among adolescents: A qualitative focus group study. Comput. Hum. Behav. 2019;93:164–175. doi: 10.1016/j.chb.2018.12.012. - DOI
    1. Griffiths M.D., Lopez-Fernandez O., Throuvala M.A., Pontes H., Kuss D.J. Excessive and Problematic Use of Social Media in Adolescence: A Brief Overview. UK Parliament Science and Technology Committee; London, UK: 2018. [(accessed on 25 May 2018)]. Impact of Social Media and Screen-Use on Young People’s Health Inquiry. Available online: http://data.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/committeeevidence.svc/evidence....
    1. Creswick H., Dowthwaite L., Koene A., Perez Vallejos E., Portillo V., Cano M., Koene A., Vallejos E.P. “… They don’t really listen to people”: Young people’s concerns and recommendations for improving online experiences. JICES. 2019;17:167–182. doi: 10.1108/JICES-11-2018-0090. - DOI