The effects of social media usage on attention, motivation, and academic performance
Abstract
Accessing social media is common and although concerns have been raised regarding the impact of social media on academic success, research in this area is sparse and inconsistent. Survey responses were collected from 659 undergraduate and graduate students to determine the relationship between social media usage and overall academic performance, as well as explore if this relationship is moderated by attention (regulation of time/study environment) and motivation (effort regulation). Both predictors, social media usage and attention, significantly predicted academic performance. Likewise, when motivation was considered as a predictor, it significantly predicted academic performance above and beyond social media usage. No moderation was found between the three variables. Implications of these relationships are discussed.
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Research extending to students with a disability/ND students is limited by its minor representation from those with disability, or its conflation across differing disability experiences.
“This is an important contribution as research extending to students with a disability/ND students is limited by its minor representation from those with disability (see Barton et al., 2021;Reed et al., 2011), or its conflation across differing disability experiences (Reed et al., 2015).”
From Neurodivergent (Autism and ADHD) student experiences of access and inclusion in higher education: an ecological systems theory perspective (2025) · cites this paper as Barton et al., 2021
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Motivational and self-regulated learning components of classroom academic performance.
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Facebook and academic performance
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Shahzad, M. F., Xu, S., Lim, W. M., Yang, X., & Khan, Q. R. (2024) · Heliyon · doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e29523 · Cited by 205 · see citing works
Zhang, C., Tang, L., & Liu, Z. (2023) · BMC Psychology · doi:10.1186/s40359-023-01311-2 · Cited by 78 · see citing works
Butcher, L., & Lane, S. (2025) · Higher Education · doi:10.1007/s10734-024-01319-6 · Cited by 54 · see citing works
“This is an important contribution as research extending to students with a disability/ND students is limited by its minor representation from those with disability (see Barton et al., 2021; Reed et al., 2011), or its conflation across differing disability experiences (Reed et al., 2015).”
Hussenoeder, F. S. (2023) · Computers in Human Behavior Reports · doi:10.1016/j.chbr.2022.100260 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
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“However, Barton et al. (2021) note that the research on the effects of online social networks usage on educational performance remains limited and inconsistent.”
Efectos de la adicción a redes sociales en la atención ejecutiva: análisis conductual y neurológico
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From distraction to delay: Unpacking academic procrastination
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“Social media platforms offer immediate gratification and serve as potent distractors from goal-directed activities (Abd Ellatif Elsayed, 2025; Barton et al., 2021; Fabio et al., 2022; Przepiorka et al., 2023).”
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- Authors
- Barton, B. A., Adams, K. S., Browne, B. L., & Arrastia-Chisholm, M. C.
- Affiliations
- Valdosta State University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Adams, Katharine S
- Venue
- Active Learning in Higher Education
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2018-06-20
- Volume
- 22
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 11-22
- ISSN
- 1469-7874 (ISSN-L)
- 1741-2625
- OpenAlex
- W2809210764
- Cited by
- 97
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 12 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 29 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 17 · 2021: 7 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 1
- FWCI
- 6.26
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Active Learning in Higher Education (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
- Social Sciences › Demography › Cyberloafing and Workplace Behavior
- Social Sciences › Education › Educational Outcomes and Influences
- Keywords
- social media use, academic performance, attention, motivation, effort regulation, time regulation, learning environment, undergraduate students, graduate students, moderating effect
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