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Effect of Abstinence from Social Media on Time Perception: Differences between Low- and At-Risk for Social Media “Addiction” Groups

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Abstract

Time distortion is a hallmark feature of addictive behaviors including excessive technology use. It has clinically significant implications for diagnosis and treatment. Additional information on such distortions after prolonged abstinence from technology use is needed. We seek to examine differences in the effects of several days of abstinence on time-distortion in two groups: social media users who are at-risk and those who are at low risk for social media “addiction.” To examine this, we employed a randomized, two group, pre (t1) - post (t2) design. Both groups completed survey tasks that cued social media use at t1 and at t2. Between t1 and t2, the treatment group (n = 294) abstained from social media use for up to one week (less if they “broke” and decided to resume use), and the control group (n = 121) did not. Results indicated that low-risk individuals in both the treatment and control groups presented downward time bias at t1; at-risk individuals presented non-significant upward bias. After abstinence, both low- and at- risk individuals in the treatment group presented upward time distortion. This effect did not take place in the control group; low-risk users still presented significant downward bias at t2. The post-abstinence increase in time distortion was significantly more pronounced in at-risk users. These differences between pre- and post-abstinence time distortion patterns in normal and at-risk-for-“addiction” social media users can be used for adjusting and interpreting self-reports related to addictive uses of technologies.

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Notes

  1. In the original cutoff study [13], Latent Profile Analysis detected this cutoff as the lower bound of a cluster of social media users with significantly elevated levels of symptoms, social media use, and depressive symptoms compared to the rest of the population, as well as reduced self-esteem compared to the rest of the population. The cutoff produced 83% sensitivity, 99% specificity, 73% positive predictive value, 99% Negative Predictive Value, and 98% accuracy.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Decision Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, 3620 South McClintock Ave., Los Angeles, CA, 90089-1061, USA

    Ofir Turel

  2. Information Systems and Decision Sciences, California State University, 800 N. State College Blvd., Fullerton, CA, 92834, USA

    Ofir Turel & Daniel R. Cavagnaro

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  1. Ofir Turel
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  2. Daniel R. Cavagnaro
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Contributions

OT and DC designed the study, collected data, ran analyses and wrote a draft. It was edited and approved by OT and DC.

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Correspondence to Ofir Turel.

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Ofir Turel declares that he has no conflict of interest. Daniel Cavagnaro declares that he has no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Turel, O., R. Cavagnaro, D. Effect of Abstinence from Social Media on Time Perception: Differences between Low- and At-Risk for Social Media “Addiction” Groups. Psychiatr Q 90, 217–227 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11126-018-9614-3

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