Sofalizing and its relationship with social media addiction and psychosocial factors: A new phenomenon among emerging adults

Tosuntaş Ş. B., Karadağ E., Emirtekin E., Kircaburun K., Griffiths M. D.

SOCIAL SCIENCE JOURNAL, cilt.61, sa.2, ss.378-390, 2024 (SSCI) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 61 Sayı: 2
  • Basım Tarihi: 2024
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1080/03623319.2020.1809900
  • Dergi Adı: SOCIAL SCIENCE JOURNAL
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, IBZ Online, International Bibliography of Social Sciences, American History and Life, Business Source Elite, Business Source Premier, Communication Abstracts, Historical Abstracts, PAIS International, Political Science Complete, Social services abstracts, Sociological abstracts, Violence & Abuse Abstracts, Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
  • Sayfa Sayıları: ss.378-390
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: internet, internet addiction, social anxiety, social connectedness, social media addiction, Sofalizing
  • Bursa Uludağ Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet

Özet

Sofalizing is a term that emerged from the combination of the words 'sofa' and 'socializing', and can be defined as interacting with others online from home rather than going out and actually meeting individuals. In the present study, the relationships between psychosocial factors (including social anxiety and social connectedness) and sofalizing were examined. Additionally, the possible mediating role of social media addiction between social anxiety and connectedness with sofalizing was also investigated. The participants comprised 666 university students (69% female, Mage = 20.35 years, SD = 2.28, age range = 17 to 40 years) recruited via convenience sampling. The data were analyzed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, correlation analysis, t-tests, and structural equation modeling. Results showed that social anxiety, but not social connectedness, was indirectly significantly associated with sofalizing via social media addiction. Social media addiction also had a moderate effect on sofalizing. The present study is the first to empirically explore the concept of 'sofalizing' and its potential contributing factors, and suggests that sofalizing warrants further examination of its impact on mental health and wellbeing.