Social Media AddictionNCT06143852
Change in Social Media Use and Well-being Among College Students Receiving a One-week Exercise or Mindfulness Intervention
A study testing Mindfulness and Social Media Reduction + Exercise in people with Social Media Addiction and Depression, Anxiety, run by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health at 1 site in United States.
Trial summary
The investigators will be randomizing 150 college student participants with high levels of social media use into either a 1) control condition (no intervention), a 2) mindfulness meditation cognitive intervention, or 3) a social media reduction + exercise replacement intervention. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Social Media Addiction, Depression, Anxiety, Well-Being, Psychological
- What is being tested?
- Mindfulness and Social Media Reduction + Exercise
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 140 participants
- Where
- 1 siteUnited States
- Study dates
- 7 Feb 2024to 11 Dec 2024
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- None posted in the registry
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 years and older
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- The participant is 18 or older.
- The participant must be a Johns Hopkins University student.
- Owning an iPhone or Android smartphone, with frequent use of social media use daily (> 1 hour)
- Enabling and sharing screenshots of your smartphone use metrics, including number of last-week pickups, notifications received, and average screen time.
- Providing consent to participate.
- Only exercising 1 hour or less daily, on average.
Who cannot join
- younger than 18
- Not a Johns Hopkins University Student
- Doesn't own a smart phone
- Uses smartphone less than 1 hour daily
- Exercises more than 1 hour daily
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country.
About this study
Official title: Comparing Change in Social Media Use and Well-being Among College Students Receiving a One-week Exercise or Mindfulness Intervention
The investigators will be randomizing 150 college student participants with high levels of social media use into either a 1) control condition (no intervention), a 2) mindfulness meditation cognitive intervention, or 3) a social media reduction + exercise replacement intervention. Participants complete intervention activities daily for one week. The investigators will collect self-report and behavioral measures of social media use and related psychological constructs at three time points: baseline, immediately after the intervention period, and one-week after the intervention period.
Read the detailed description
The objective of this study is to test two cognitive and behavioral interventions designed to reduce social media use and psychological constructs related to social media use in a sample of university students.
The first cognitive intervention is a mindfulness meditation exercise taken from the Calm app centering around gratitude. Each meditation takes approximately 12 minutes to complete and is to be done daily for one week. The second behavioral intervention is asking participants to reduce social media use for 30 minutes daily for one week and replacing that time with physical exercise of the participants' choosing.
Aim 1: Compare psychological constructs related to mental health (well-being, stress, depression, anxiety, loneliness, social comparisons, etc.) before and after conducting two social media use interventions over a period of one week, compared to a control condition (no intervention).
Aim 2: Compare self-reported and behavioral (smartphone screen shots of social media use screen time) measures of social media use before and after two social media use interventions over a period of over one week, compared to a control condition (no intervention).
Aim 3: Examine mental health and social media use one week after the intervention period is complete (follow up), examining or testing whether effects last beyond the intervention period.
- Being tested
- Mindfulness, Social Media Reduction + Exercise
- Medical subject headings
- Internet Addiction Disorder, Depression, Anxiety Disorders, Psychological Well-Being
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
MindfulnessBehavioural
12 minute daily guided meditation
Social Media Reduction + ExerciseBehavioural
Reduce social media use at least 30 minutes daily and exercise instead
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Control | No intervention | Participants will not receive an intervention. They will receive instructions to use their social media use as usual. |
| Mindfulness | Experimental | Approximately 12-minute mindfulness-style meditations will be completed daily for one week through the Calm platform. Participants can listen to the exercise on the web-enabled version of Calm, or through the smartphone app. The course is entitled "7 Days of Gratitude" and centers around noticing and appreciating things in daily life. Receives: Behavioral: Mindfulness |
| Social Media Reduction + Exercise | Experimental | Participants will reduce their social media use by at least 30 minutes daily for one week. Simultaneously, participants will exercise at least 30 minutes daily. Participants are given examples of common exercises (walking, yoga, strength training, etc.), but they are allowed to choose any type, although they are dissuaded from activities with high potential for injury. Receives: Behavioral: Social Media Reduction + Exercise |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Change in Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 (DASS-21)
Score range = 0-63, higher score = worse outcome
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQoL-BREF) scale
Score range = 13-65, lower score = worse outcome
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Smartphone screen time (minutes) for social media use
Past-week amount of screen time for social media use
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Number of Social media use smartphone pick-ups
Past-week total number of smartphone pick-ups for social media use applications
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Percent of time using social media
Past-week percent of time using social media compared to other smartphone application categories.
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Social media use notifications received
Past-week total number of notifications received for social media use applications
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Secondary outcomes (8)
Change in University of California, Los Angeles 3-Item Loneliness Scale
Score range = 3-9, higher score = worse outcome
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in The Gratitude Questionnaire, 6-item form (GQ-6) scale
Score range = 6-42, lower score = worse outcome
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Motivations for Electronic Interaction Scale (MEIS)
Score range = 10-50, higher score = worse outcome
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Comprehensive Assessment of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Processes (CompACT-15) scale
Score range = 0-138, lower scores = worse outcome
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS)
Score range = 6-35, higher score = worse outcome
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Fear of Missing Out Scale
Score range = 10-50, higher score = worse outcome
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Hours spent socializing in-person with peers
Score range = 0-20+ hours of in-person socialization, lower scores = worse outcomes
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Number of evenings of past-week recreation
Score range = 0-7 evenings of recreation, lower scores = worse outcomes
Measured: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted22 Nov 2023
- Study start7 Feb 2024
- Primary completion11 Dec 2024
- Study completion11 Dec 2024
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Publications (9)Papers the sponsor has linked to this study.
- Other trials for Social Media AddictionStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public HealthThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Model description
- Three groups of 1) no intervention, 2) mindfulness, or 3) social media reduction + exercise replacement intervention arms
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 140 participants (actual)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Johannes Thrul, Principal investigator, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06143852
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- IRB00025926
- Status last verified
- May 2025
- First submitted
- 14 Nov 2023
- Last updated
- 31 May 2025
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Yes: We will discuss as a team the how to share individual participant data with other researchers in a confidential manner.
Publications
Hanley SM, Watt SE, Coventry W. Taking a break: The effect of taking a vacation from Facebook and Instagram on subjective well-being. PLoS One. 2019 Jun 6;14(6):e0217743. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0217743. eCollection 2019.
PubMed 31170206Hou, Y., Xiong, D., Jiang, T., Song, L., & Wang, Q. (2019). Social media addiction: Its impact, mediation, and intervention. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 13(1), article 4.
Hunt, M. G., Marx, R., Lipson, C., & Young, J. (2018). No more FOMO: Limiting social media decreases loneliness and depression. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 37(10), 751-768.
Lambert J, Barnstable G, Minter E, Cooper J, McEwan D. Taking a One-Week Break from Social Media Improves Well-Being, Depression, and Anxiety: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw. 2022 May;25(5):287-293. doi: 10.1089/cyber.2021.0324. Epub 2022 May 3.
PubMed 35512731Roberts TA, Daniels EA, Weaver JM, Zanovitch LS. "Intermission!" A short-term social media fast reduces self-objectification among pre-teen and teen dancers. Body Image. 2022 Dec;43:125-133. doi: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2022.08.015. Epub 2022 Sep 21.
PubMed 36152479van Wezel MMC, Abrahamse EL, Vanden Abeele MMP. Does a 7-day restriction on the use of social media improve cognitive functioning and emotional well-being? Results from a randomized controlled trial. Addict Behav Rep. 2021 Jun 15;14:100365. doi: 10.1016/j.abrep.2021.100365. eCollection 2021 Dec.
PubMed 34938826Vanman EJ, Baker R, Tobin SJ. The burden of online friends: the effects of giving up Facebook on stress and well-being. J Soc Psychol. 2018;158(4):496-507. doi: 10.1080/00224545.2018.1453467. Epub 2018 Apr 9.
PubMed 29558267Nicuță, E.G., Constantin, T. Take Nothing for Granted: Downward Social Comparison and Counterfactual Thinking Increase Adolescents' State Gratitude for the Little Things in Life. J Happiness Stud 22, 3543-3570 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-021-00382-5.
Hall, J.A., Xing, C., Ross. E.M., Johnson, R.M. Experimentally manipulating social media abstinence: results of a four-week diary study. Media Psychology, 2019; 24, 259 - 275
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 31 May 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Comparing Change in Social Media Use and Well-being Among College Students Receiving a One-week Exercise or Mindfulness Intervention
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT06143852
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- IRB00025926
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Enrolment
- 140 participants (actual)
- Lead sponsor
- Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public HealthUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 7 Feb 2024 (actual)
- Primary completion
- 11 Dec 2024 (actual)
- Study completion
- 11 Dec 2024 (actual)
- First posted
- 22 Nov 2023 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
The investigators will be randomizing 150 college student participants with high levels of social media use into either a 1) control condition (no intervention), a 2) mindfulness meditation cognitive intervention, or 3) a social media reduction + exercise replacement intervention. Participants complete intervention activities daily for one week. The investigators will collect self-report and behavioral measures of social media use and related psychological constructs at three time points: baseline, immediately after the intervention period, and one-week after the intervention period.
Detailed description
The objective of this study is to test two cognitive and behavioral interventions designed to reduce social media use and psychological constructs related to social media use in a sample of university students.
The first cognitive intervention is a mindfulness meditation exercise taken from the Calm app centering around gratitude. Each meditation takes approximately 12 minutes to complete and is to be done daily for one week. The second behavioral intervention is asking participants to reduce social media use for 30 minutes daily for one week and replacing that time with physical exercise of the participants' choosing.
Aim 1: Compare psychological constructs related to mental health (well-being, stress, depression, anxiety, loneliness, social comparisons, etc.) before and after conducting two social media use interventions over a period of one week, compared to a control condition (no intervention).
Aim 2: Compare self-reported and behavioral (smartphone screen shots of social media use screen time) measures of social media use before and after two social media use interventions over a period of over one week, compared to a control condition (no intervention).
Aim 3: Examine mental health and social media use one week after the intervention period is complete (follow up), examining or testing whether effects last beyond the intervention period.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Treatment
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 3
- Model description
- Three groups of 1) no intervention, 2) mindfulness, or 3) social media reduction + exercise replacement intervention arms
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Control | No intervention | –Participants will not receive an intervention. They will receive instructions to use their social media use as usual. |
| Mindfulness | Experimental | Behavioral: MindfulnessApproximately 12-minute mindfulness-style meditations will be completed daily for one week through the Calm platform. Participants can listen to the exercise on the web-enabled version of Calm, or through the smartphone app. The course is entitled "7 Days of Gratitude" and centers around noticing and appreciating things in daily life. |
| Social Media Reduction + Exercise | Experimental | Behavioral: Social Media Reduction + ExerciseParticipants will reduce their social media use by at least 30 minutes daily for one week. Simultaneously, participants will exercise at least 30 minutes daily. Participants are given examples of common exercises (walking, yoga, strength training, etc.), but they are allowed to choose any type, although they are dissuaded from activities with high potential for injury. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (6 listed)
- The participant is 18 or older.
- The participant must be a Johns Hopkins University student.
- Owning an iPhone or Android smartphone, with frequent use of social media use daily (> 1 hour)
- Enabling and sharing screenshots of your smartphone use metrics, including number of last-week pickups, notifications received, and average screen time.
- Providing consent to participate.
Key exclusion criteria (5 listed)
- younger than 18
- Not a Johns Hopkins University Student
- Doesn't own a smart phone
- Uses smartphone less than 1 hour daily
- Exercises more than 1 hour daily
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness12 minute daily guided meditation | Behavioural | Mindfulness |
| Social Media Reduction + ExerciseReduce social media use at least 30 minutes daily and exercise instead | Behavioural | Social Media Reduction + Exercise |
Primary outcome
Change in Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 (DASS-21)
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Score range = 0-63, higher score = worse outcome
Change in World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQoL-BREF) scale
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Score range = 13-65, lower score = worse outcome
Change in Smartphone screen time (minutes) for social media use
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Past-week amount of screen time for social media use
Change in Number of Social media use smartphone pick-ups
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Past-week total number of smartphone pick-ups for social media use applications
Change in Percent of time using social media
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Past-week percent of time using social media compared to other smartphone application categories.
Change in Social media use notifications received
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Past-week total number of notifications received for social media use applications
8 secondary outcomes
Change in University of California, Los Angeles 3-Item Loneliness Scale
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in The Gratitude Questionnaire, 6-item form (GQ-6) scale
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Motivations for Electronic Interaction Scale (MEIS)
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Comprehensive Assessment of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Processes (CompACT-15) scale
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS)
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Fear of Missing Out Scale
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Hours spent socializing in-person with peers
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Change in Number of evenings of past-week recreation
Time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week
Results and safety
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 31 May 2025.
- Background: PubMed 31170206Hanley SM, Watt SE, Coventry W. Taking a break: The effect of taking a vacation from Facebook and Instagram on subjective well-being. PLoS One. 2019 Jun 6;14(6):e0217743. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0217743. eCollection 2019.
- BackgroundHou, Y., Xiong, D., Jiang, T., Song, L., & Wang, Q. (2019). Social media addiction: Its impact, mediation, and intervention. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 13(1), article 4.
- BackgroundHunt, M. G., Marx, R., Lipson, C., & Young, J. (2018). No more FOMO: Limiting social media decreases loneliness and depression. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 37(10), 751-768.
- Background: PubMed 35512731Lambert J, Barnstable G, Minter E, Cooper J, McEwan D. Taking a One-Week Break from Social Media Improves Well-Being, Depression, and Anxiety: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Cyberpsychol Behav Soc Netw. 2022 May;25(5):287-293. doi: 10.1089/cyber.2021.0324. Epub 2022 May 3.
- Background: PubMed 36152479Roberts TA, Daniels EA, Weaver JM, Zanovitch LS. "Intermission!" A short-term social media fast reduces self-objectification among pre-teen and teen dancers. Body Image. 2022 Dec;43:125-133. doi: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2022.08.015. Epub 2022 Sep 21.
- Background: PubMed 34938826van Wezel MMC, Abrahamse EL, Vanden Abeele MMP. Does a 7-day restriction on the use of social media improve cognitive functioning and emotional well-being? Results from a randomized controlled trial. Addict Behav Rep. 2021 Jun 15;14:100365. doi: 10.1016/j.abrep.2021.100365. eCollection 2021 Dec.
- Background: PubMed 29558267Vanman EJ, Baker R, Tobin SJ. The burden of online friends: the effects of giving up Facebook on stress and well-being. J Soc Psychol. 2018;158(4):496-507. doi: 10.1080/00224545.2018.1453467. Epub 2018 Apr 9.
- BackgroundNicuță, E.G., Constantin, T. Take Nothing for Granted: Downward Social Comparison and Counterfactual Thinking Increase Adolescents' State Gratitude for the Little Things in Life. J Happiness Stud 22, 3543-3570 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-021-00382-5.
- Results publicationHall, J.A., Xing, C., Ross. E.M., Johnson, R.M. Experimentally manipulating social media abstinence: results of a four-week diary study. Media Psychology, 2019; 24, 259 - 275
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Yes. We will discuss as a team the how to share individual participant data with other researchers in a confidential manner.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.
Johannes Thrul principal investigator
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Mindfulness and Social Media Reduction + Exercise in people with Social Media Addiction and Depression, Anxiety, run by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health at 1 site in United States.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 6 inclusion and 5 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 31 May 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Change in Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale - 21 (DASS-21) (time frame: baseline, immediately post intervention, post intervention up to one week). The study lists 6 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT06143852, which also lists 9 linked publications.
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 31 May 2025.