Psychosomatic symptoms and attainment of flow state among adolescents: Role of social networking usage

Ravi P. Pandey, Febina Sherin, Pradip Kumar Gupta, Tanya Sharma, Vivek Singh, Pramod Kumar, Deepak Kumar, Purnima Awasthi, Arun Kumar, Nitu Singh, Ravindra Singh, Shantesh Kumar Singh

First published April 14, 2025

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the role of social media usage in the ‘psychosomatic’ symptoms and
flow state of adolescents. The data was collected from 200 participants (94 males and 106 female) with the age range of
16 to 19 years (mean age 18,58) from Haryana and Delhi-NCR region of India. The sample was selected using convenient
sampling method. Measures of Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-15), Flow State Questionnaire and Social Networking
Usage Questionnaire were used to collect the data. Findings indicated a significant positive correlation of social media
usage with the psychosomatic symptoms and negative correlation with the flow state of the adolescents. Stepwise
regression analysis revealed that social networking usage (socialization, informativeness & entertainment) contributed
significantly to the psychosomatic symptoms of adolescents. In addition, social networking usage and their dimensions
negatively predicted the flow state of adolescents. Health care professionals and government may use the findings of the
study to regulate the use of social media especially for adolescents to alleviate the ill effects of social networking usage
and promote health related behavior among adolescents

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P. Pandey Ravi . Sherin Febina . Kumar Gupta Pradip . Sharma Tanya . Singh Vivek . Kumar Pramod . Kumar Deepak . Awasthi Purnima . Kumar Arun . Singh Nitu . Singh Ravindra . Kumar Singh Shantesh . Psychosomatic symptoms and attainment of flow state among adolescents: Role of social networking usage. BPA Applied Psychology Bulletin. 2025;19.

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Psychosomatic symptoms and attainment of flow state among adolescents: Role of social networking usage

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