Breaking the Cycle of Social Media Addiction: Efficacy of a 4-STEP Training Program in Reducing Cognitive Fatigue, Psychological Distress, Academic Procrastination, and Burnout Among Adolescents

Primary outcomes

1. Social Networking Addiction Scale

   Time frame: After 4 weeks and reassessment up to 6 months]

   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 15-17), and relapse (items 18-21) (Shahnawaz & Rehman, 2020). The SNAS is a self-reported scale which entails 21-items scale rated on 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). The score can range from 21 to 147. Any score above a total score of 84 signifies addiction. The scale has demonstrated good test-retest reliability of 0.88 and good validity as reported by Shahnawaz and Rehman (2020).

2. Multidimensional Fatigue Scale ( MFS)

   Time frame: after 4 weeks, and reassessment up to 6 months

   The scale was designed to assess fatigue-related experiences among children and adolescents across multiple domains of functioning. The PedsQL Multidimensional Fatigue Scale consists of 18 items divided into three subscales: General Fatigue, Sleep/Rest Fatigue and Cognitive Fatigue with each subscale comprising six items. The instrument uses a 5-point Likert-scale response format which range from (0=Never to 4=Almost Always) with participants indicating how frequently they experienced each fatigue-related symptom during the past month. Lower scores on the Multidimentional Fatigue Scale items indicated greater levels of cognitive fatigue among the participants (Varni, n.d.).

3. Tuckman Procrastination Scale

   Time frame: at screening after 4 weekds, and reassessment up to 6 months]

   The scale was developed to assess individual's tendencies to delay, postpone or avoid completing tasks and responsibilities. Since its development the TPS has been widely used to examine procrastination in educational settings among adolescent and student populations. The scale consists of 16 items and employs a 4-point Likert-scale response format ranging from (1=That is not me for sure, to 4=That is me for sure). Participants are asked to indicate the extent to which each statement describes their typical behavior. Higher scores on the scale indicate a greater tendency toward procrastination.

4. School Burnout Inventory

   Time frame: At screening, after 4 weeks and reassessment upto 6 months

   School Burnout Inventory (SBI-9) 2009a). The instrument was designed to assess school-related burnout among adolescents and has been widely used in educational and psychological research to evaluate students' experiences of exhaustion and disengagement related to academic demands. In the present study, the School Burnout Inventory was administered to measure academic burnout among adolescent school students. The instrument was considered appropriate because it captures the multidimensional nature of burnout within the school context and has demonstrated satisfactory psychometric properties among adolescent populations. Scores on all items were summed to obtain an overall measure of academic burnout with higher scores reflecting greater levels of burnout.

5. Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21

   Time frame: At screening, after 4 weeks and reassessment upto 6 months

   Depression Anxiety Stress Scales-21 (DASS-21). The DASS-21 and has been widely used in both clinical and non-clinical populations (S. H. Lovibond & Lovibond, 2011). The scale consists of 21 items distributed across three subscales: Depression, Anxiety and Stress with each subscale comprising seven items. The instrument employs a 4-point Likert-type response format ranging from (0=Never to 3=Always). Participants are asked to indicate the extent to which each statement applied to them during the previous week. In the present study the Urdu version of the DASS-21 was administered to measure psychological distress among adolescent school students.