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Social Media Use and Its Association with Mental Health and Internet Addiction among Portuguese Higher Education Students during COVID-19 Confinement

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  • Ana Paula Oliveira

    (Health School, Polytechnic Institute of Portalegre, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal
    Faculty of Nursing, University of Rovira e Virgili, 43003 Tarragona, Spain)

  • Joana Rita Nobre

    (Health School, Polytechnic Institute of Portalegre, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal
    Faculty of Nursing, University of Rovira e Virgili, 43003 Tarragona, Spain)

  • Henrique Luis

    (Health School, Polytechnic Institute of Portalegre, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portugal
    Unidade de Investigação em Ciências Orais e Biomédicas (UICOB), Faculdade de Medicina Dentária, Universidade de Lisboa, Rua Teresa Ambrósio, 1600-277 Lisbon, Portugal
    Center for Innovative Care and Health Technology (ciTechcare), Polytechnic of Leiria, 2410-541 Leiria, Portugal)

  • Luis Soares Luis

    (Center for Innovative Care and Health Technology (ciTechcare), Polytechnic of Leiria, 2410-541 Leiria, Portugal
    School of Health Sciences, Polytechnic of Leiria, 2410-541 Leiria, Portugal)

  • Lara Guedes Pinho

    (Nursing School, University of Évora, 7000-811 Évora, Portugal
    Comprehensive Health Research Center, 7002-554 Évora, Portugal)

  • Núria Albacar-Riobóo

    (Faculty of Nursing, University of Rovira e Virgili, 43003 Tarragona, Spain)

  • Carlos Sequeira

    (Nursing School of Porto, 4200-072 Porto, Portugal
    Group Inovation and Development in Nursing (NursID), Centro de Investigação em Tecnologias e Serviços de Saúde (CINTESIS), 4200-450 Porto, Portugal)

Abstract

The use of social media was one of the most common way to keep in touch with friends and family during confinement. For higher education students, the fact that their universities were closed was a major change in their lives. The aim of this study is to relate the prevalence and type of social media with Internet addiction and mental health of university students in a district of Portugal during COVID-19 confinement. Mental health was studied by applying the reduced version of the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5) and to measure the Internet use and dependence, the Internet Addiction Test (IAT) was used. The study (cross-sectional, descriptive, and correlational) used an online questionnaire, conducted on Google ® Forms and the link was sent to 4450 students, in the months of April to June 2020, during the confinement. A total of 329 valid questionnaires were obtained. We can conclude that regarding mental health, students in the 18–24 age group, single or divorced and who are not in a relationship, and with worse academic results, show worse levels of mental health. It is noteworthy that the students with the same characteristics also have the highest levels of addiction to internet.

Suggested Citation

  • Ana Paula Oliveira & Joana Rita Nobre & Henrique Luis & Luis Soares Luis & Lara Guedes Pinho & Núria Albacar-Riobóo & Carlos Sequeira, 2022. "Social Media Use and Its Association with Mental Health and Internet Addiction among Portuguese Higher Education Students during COVID-19 Confinement," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(1), pages 1-13, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2022:i:1:p:664-:d:1020207
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Tagrid Lemenager & Miriam Neissner & Anne Koopmann & Iris Reinhard & Ekaterini Georgiadou & Astrid Müller & Falk Kiefer & Thomas Hillemacher, 2020. "COVID-19 Lockdown Restrictions and Online Media Consumption in Germany," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(1), pages 1-13, December.
    2. Salima Meherali & Neelam Punjani & Samantha Louie-Poon & Komal Abdul Rahim & Jai K. Das & Rehana A. Salam & Zohra S. Lassi, 2021. "Mental Health of Children and Adolescents Amidst COVID-19 and Past Pandemics: A Rapid Systematic Review," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-16, March.
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