Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 26322639

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Computers in Human Behavior

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/comphumbeh

Social networking on smartphones: When mobile phones become

addictive
Mohammad Salehan 1,, Arash Negahban 1
College of Business, University of North Texas, 1307 West Highland Street, Denton, TX 76201, USA

a r t i c l e

i n f o

Article history:
Available online 27 July 2013
Keywords:
Mobile addiction
Social networking services (SNS)
Mobile applications
Social networking mobile applications

a b s t r a c t
As the penetration of mobile phones in societies increases, there is a large growth in the use of mobile
phones especially among the youth. This trend is followed by the fast growth in use of online social networking services (SNS). Extensive use of technology can lead to addiction. This study nds that the use of
SNS mobile applications is a signicant predictor of mobile addiction. The result also shows that the use
of SNS mobile applications is affected by both SNS network size and SNS intensity of the user. This study
has implications for academia as well as governmental and non-for-prot organizations regarding the
effect of mobile phones on individuals and public health.
2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction
Information and communication technologies (ICT) have significantly changed the way we live and have become an inseparable
part of our lives. Many people, especially the youth, use these technologies on a daily basis and for various purposes. People use computers to study, to search for information on the internet, to play
games, and to communicate with others.
These days, most people have mobile phones and use them onthe-go. Recent statistics from December 2011 show that there are
331.6 million mobile phone subscribers in the United States which
indicates a penetration rate of 104% for mobile phones across the
country (CTIA, 2011). In 2011, the number of mobile phones worldwide exceeds 5.6 billion, showing an 11% increase compared to its
previous year and an average penetration rate of 79.86% worldwide
(Gartner, 2011).
Recent advances in hardware and software with the introduction of smartphones has augmented the use of ICT in daily life. In
2011, smartphone vendors experienced a sharp increase in their
sales, reaching 472 million units which showed 58% increase in
comparison to the previous year (Gartner, 2012). The sales for
smartphone also accounted for 31% of all mobile phone sales in
2011 (Gartner, 2012).
Nowadays, people use their mobile phones for a wide variety of
tasks ranging from calling and texting to playing games, navigation, and social networking. Online social networking services

Corresponding author. Address: University of North Texas, College of Business,

1155 Union Circle #311160, Denton, TX 76203-5017, USA.
E-mail addresses: mohammad.salehan@unt.edu (M. Salehan), arash.negah
ban@unt.edu (A. Negahban).
1
These authors contributed equally to the work.
0747-5632/$ - see front matter 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2013.07.003

(SNS) have gained rapid popularity in recent years. Social networking services are now more than mere websites. They provide their
users with several ways to connect others including web, email,
and mobile applications. Many SNS vendors have introduced mobile applications that can be installed on smartphones for fast
and easy access to SNS. Facebook, the most popular SNS, currently
has 955 million active users (Mashable, 2012) out of whom more
than half connect through mobile devices (SocialBakers, 2012).
Although mobile phones are very popular and bring lots of benets to their users, various social issues have arisen during their
adoption, including: use of mobile phones in banned and dangerous circumstances (Bianchi & Phillips, 2005), complaints about
the use of mobile phones in public places, compulsive use, and
even addiction (Toda et al., 2008). ICT has the potential to create
addiction in individuals. This is supported by the theory of optimal
ow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) which posits that for some individuals, the experience with ICT is so enjoyable that they will try to
maintain the state even at high costs. Excessive mobile phone
use can even be seen as a type of technostress (Brod, 1984). By preventing people from working or studying, addiction can cause
harm to both individuals and the society (Park, 2005).
As Internet is becoming and indispensable part of peoples lives,
it is also becoming source of severe problems for both individuals
and organizations. Addiction to internet, as a technology, is an instance of addiction caused by technology (Grifths, 1999; Leung,
2004). Internet addiction not only is harming peoples personal
lives, it is also making organizations more concerned about their
employees productivity, network congestion, and corporate data
privacy (Chou, Sinha, & Zhao, 2010). This combined with the sharp
increase in the penetration rate of mobile devices, which allows
anytime-anywhere internet connectivity, along with widespread
use of social networking applications on mobile phones, would

M. Salehan, A. Negahban / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 26322639

exacerbate the social and personal problems associated with mobile phones and internet technology.
Although there has been extensive research on technology
addiction, mobile phone addiction has received little attention
from scholars (Belles, Beranuy, Carbonell, & Guardiola, 2009). This
study contributes to lling this gap by investigating the relationship between use of mobile phone for social networking and mobile phone addiction. Drawing on the theory of optimal ow, this
study focuses on how the use of social networking mobile applications can affect mobile phone addiction.
This study has three objectives: (1) to propose a research model
explaining how the use of social networking mobile applications
can be associated with mobile phone addiction, (2) to empirically
test the proposed model using data collected from smartphone
users, and (3) to give the academia and practitioners deep insight
about this effect and its implications. The following parts of this
paper are organized as follows: rst, we present the theoretical
background of the study. Then, we propose our research model
and hypotheses. Finally, we discuss the methodology, results and
implications of our study.

2. Theoretical background
2.1. Technology addiction
Addiction can be explained by oddly high dependence on a particular thing (Park, 2005). Addiction is characterized by repetitive
acts with a total negative sum of consequences (Waal & Mrland,
1999). The need for short-term satisfaction in an addict overshadows the long term implications of his/her actions (Waal & Mrland,
1999). While being over-attentive to instant satisfaction, addicts
usually have incorrect or distorted image of the future although
they have a degree of recognition about the costs incurred in the
future (ODonoghue & Rabin, 1999).
Theory of optimal ow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) posits that
information technology can cultivate addiction among individuals.
The experience in this manner is so enjoyable for the individual
that they will try to maintain the state even at high costs
(Csikszentmihalyi, 1990). Technology can cause addiction in several ways. For example, technology can facilitate work addiction.
A study on the effect of technology on work addiction showed that
technology can be intensely used by people within and outside
work requirements (Porter & Kakabadse, 2006). The study shows
that the use of technology in organizations can lead to sacrice
of other goals. These sacrices can be in the form of neglecting
other commitments, decrease in social activities and contact with
friends, and gaining weight as a result of giving up physical activity
(Porter & Kakabadse, 2006).
Media addiction is another type of addiction associated with
technology. People use media for seeking information, relaxation,
escape or companionship (Park, 2005). In general, motivations for
use of media can be categorized in two groups: instrumental use
(information seeking, arousal-seeking) and ritualistic use (habit,
passing time) (Rubin, 1981, 1984). Internet addiction is a type of
media addiction which is characterized by feelings of isolation
and loneliness, low self-condence and self-esteem (Douglas
et al., 2008).
Mobile phone addiction is another type of technology addiction.
Mobile phone addiction can be categorized as a problematic
behavior. The most prominent example of problematic use is use
of mobile phone in legally restricted, socially inappropriate, or
even hazardous circumstances such as while driving. Problematic
use has been shown to be related to age, extroversion, low selfesteem (Bianchi & Phillips, 2005), and high self-monitoring (Takao,
Takahashi, & Kitamura, 2009).

2633

Mobile phone addiction is associated with different factors such

as personal habits and loneliness (Park, 2005; Toda et al., 2008).
Ritualistic motives can explain mobile phone addiction better than
instrumental motives (Park, 2005). Mobile phone addiction can be
characterized by symptoms like feeling uncomfortable and
irritated when mobile phone is not accessible (Park, 2005). Mobile
addiction is also associated with high depression (Lu et al., 2011),
social extroversion, anxiety (Hong, Chiu, & Huang, 2012), insomnia
(Jenaro, Flores, Gomez-Vela, Gonzalez-Gil, & Caballo, 2007), and
psychological distress (Beranuy, Oberst, Carbonell, & Chamarro,
2009). Mobile phone addiction is also found to be a signicant predictor of intention to use and purchase smartphones (Negahban,
2012). Some of the issues arising from mobile addiction include
time management problems and academic problems in school
(Hong et al., 2012).
Gender can affect mobile phone addiction. Women are more
likely to become mobile phone addicted than men (Jenaro et al.,
2007; Takao et al., 2009). A study showed that mobile phone addiction rates are correlated with smoking habits and health practice
index (HPI) in men while the effect was not signicant in women
(Toda, Monden, Kubo, & Morimoto, 2006). Women have a higher
preference for indirect communication than men (Toda et al.,
2006). As a result, men tend to more rely on voice phone services
while women are more dependent on internet services (Toda
et al., 2006). Women are also more pleased with communication
via email, and are more likely to use it to build close relationships
(Boneva, Kraut, & Frohlich, 2001; McKenna, Green, & Gleason,
2002).
Although mobile phones and cigarettes have been suggested to
be substitutable products (Charlton & Bates, 2000), several studies
show that mobile phone use and smoking are complementary
rather than substitutable goods (Koivusilta, Lintonen, & Rimpel,
2003; Peretti-Watel, Legleye, & Beck, 2002). In general, invasive
mobile phone use has been found to be associated with health risking behaviors like smoking, snufng, and alcohol (Koivusilta, Lintonen, & Rimpel, 2005; Koivusilta et al., 2003). Mobile phone
addiction is also associated with maternal rearing attitudes in women. Females with higher levels of maternal protection are more
likely to be addicted to mobile phones than those with lower levels
of maternal protection (Toda et al., 2008).
Although many studies suggest that mobile phone use can lead
to addiction, Oulasvirta, Rattenbury, Ma, and Raita (2012) believe
that mobile devices are rather habit-forming than addictive. They
identied a habit associated with smartphone use called checking
habit which is brief repetitive checking of dynamic content on
enabled devices. Their ndings show that the checking habit,
which is reinforced by informational rewards, may increase overall
mobile device usage. They conclude that although this habitual use
is frequent, it can be better categorized as annoyance rather than
addiction.
2.2. Social networking services
Social networking services not only are changing human communication and interaction patterns (Humphreys, 2008), they also
have the potential to create intense interactions and inuence their
members lives even though those interactions may be limited
within the online context (Cheung & Lee, 2010; Clemons, 2009).
Social networking services can be dened as web-based services
that allow individuals to (1) construct a public or semi-public
prole within a bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other users
with whom they share a connection, and (3) view and traverse
their list of connections and those made by others within the system (Boyd & Ellison, 2008, p. 211). Social networks are structure
of relationships among individuals which can offer socioeconomic
benets to their participants (Ganley & Lampe, 2009). An SNS can

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M. Salehan, A. Negahban / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 26322639

be viewed as a place where people exchange information, share

status, and entertain themselves (Clemons, 2009).
Social networking services vary largely based on their features
and their user-base. Some are designed for almost everyone while
some are designed for people with specic ethnicity, religion, language, profession, etc. Even for those that are designed for heterogeneous groups of users, it is not uncommon to nd users who
segregate themselves based on various social factors. Some SNS
are intended to maintain existing relationships among individuals
while some others enable strangers to form communities and forums by nding and connecting to other users with whom they share
common interests, ideas, beliefs, or even nationality, race, sexual
orientation (Boyd & Ellison, 2008; Zhang, Li, Zeng, & Gao, 2013).
Besides maintaining and/or creating new relationships among
users, social networking services enable users to articulate their
social networks and create connections that would not be created
otherwise (Boyd & Ellison, 2008). While the network size is an
important characteristic of every SNS users network, it has not received much attention. Network size in SNS is about the number of
people a person is connected to. For example in Facebook, network
size can be viewed as the number of friends and in LinkedIn as the
number of connections. Previous research show that men have
usually more friends on their proles (Fogel & Nehmad, 2009). In
addition, larger network size is associated with more information
disclosure on SNS (Young & Quan-Haase, 2009). In the context of
online social network ties, the number of a users connections is
an indicator for his/her social network participation intensity
(Ganley & Lampe, 2009). In our study, we distinguish between participation intensity and network size.
SNS intensity is an important construct in SNS context. SNS
intensity is about the frequency of use and time spent on social
networking services. Online communication is associated with
sense of belonging to a group and friendship quality (Quinn & Oldmeadow, 2013). Boys aged between 9 and 13 who have a higher
SNS intensity tend to gain more benets from their friendships
than those with lower SNS intensity (Quinn & Oldmeadow,
2013). SNS intensity is an important predictor of social capital (Ellison, Steineld, & Lampe, 2007; Steineld, Ellison, & Lampe, 2008).
It is also an important predictor of having a private SNS prole (Lewis, Kaufman, & Christakis, 2008). The construct has also been
found to be associated with life satisfaction, social trust, and civic
participation (Valenzuela, Park, & Kee, 2009) as well as marginally
associated with SNS happiness (Utz & Beukeboom, 2011).
Mobile technology is an important communication channel that
facilitates social connections (Humphreys, 2008). Some SNS, such
as Dodgeball, are mobile-limited while some others, such as Facebook, support mobile channel in addition to other communication
channels (Boyd & Ellison, 2008). Mobile phones can be used for social networking in different ways. Mobile social networking can be
done by calling, texting or using mobile internet. Previous studies
have shown that there may be differences among various user
groups in terms of their usage behavior. For instance, females tend
to have larger mobile phone text message social networks (Igarashi,
Takai, & Yoshida, 2005). Recently, there was a sharp growth in the
number of people using mobile devices to access social networking
services. Social networking is ranked among the top ve activities
by mobile users. At the end of 2011, more than 35% of smartphone
users in the United States used their mobile devices to access social
networks and blogs (ComScore, 2012). This was almost doubled at
the end of 2012, reaching more than 65% (ComScore, 2013).

mobile addiction. Drawing on the theory of optimal ow, we propose that excessive use of social networking applications on mobile phone can lead to mobile addiction. Figure 1 shows our
research model. Network size is the number of people a person is
connected to through his/her social network. In this study we focus
on SNS network size rather than overall social network size of the
person which includes both online and ofine connections. As a result, we dene network size as the number of people an individual
is connected to through his/her online social network. Drawing on
Ellison et al. (2007), we dene SNS intensity as the extent to which
an individual is actively engaged in SNS activities. Finally, we
dene use of SNS mobileapplications as the degree to which an
individual utilizes mobile applications to connect to SNS.
Network size may be positively associated with SNS intensity
for two reasons. First, people who have larger network size tend
to have more people in their social circle and the larger the social
circle, the more the people to communicate with. Thus, larger network size is related to more communications and higher SNS
intensity. Second, larger SNS network size is associated with higher
levels of information disclosure (Young & Quan-Haase, 2009). High
levels of information disclosure may result in more communications because information disclosure on SNS usually results in
feedback from SNS friends. Users frequently respond to friends
feedbacks by means of liking or putting comments which may
create more interactions with their friends. Thus, larger network
size makes people to be more active on their SNS in order to keep
in touch with their large network. Considering the above argument, we hypothesize that:
H1. Network size positively affects SNS intensity
As we saw above, larger network size is associated with larger
social circle and consequently more communications. Since mobile phones provide easy, rapid and continuous connection, they
provide a very efcient means of communication for people that
need continuous connection with others. Mobile phones provide
instantaneous communication facility for people through different
channels, such as: voice communications, texting, and internet.
The diversity of communication channels for mobile phones
allows them to act as a vehicle that handles large volumes of communication with abundant number of people. As a result, the
more people need communications, the more they will use their
mobile phones.
People who have large number of connections on SNS can use
their mobile phones to maintain their SNS relationships. By simply
installing the mobile application associated with their SNS on their
mobile phones, individuals will have the opportunity to be always

3. Research model and hypotheses

This study investigates the effect of social networking services
and especially using social networking mobile applications on

Fig. 1. Research model.

M. Salehan, A. Negahban / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 26322639

connected to their SNS and communicate with their connections. It

is very likely for people with larger SNS network size to install SNS
mobile applications because these applications can highly respond
to their need for SNS communications. Thus, we propose that:
H2. Network size positively affects the use of mobile social
networking applications
Social networking intensity is about the time people spend on
their SNS as well as the frequency they visit it. The frequency of
checking may vary from once in a while to multiple times in an
hour. People who work with computers more often may keep their
Facebook page open during the day and check it every few minutes
or whenever they receive a notication. People who spend a lot of
time on their SNS typically receive more feedback from their SNS
connections. In Facebook the user is notied about such feedbacks
through notications. Normally, the user may respond to certain
notications faster than the others.
Unavailability of internet access is one of the major issues that
prevent users from timely responding to feedbacks. Mobile social
networking applications can be used to address this problem since
mobile devices provide ubiquitous access to SNS. As a result, we
expect users with higher SNS intensity to use their mobile phones
more often for connecting to their SNS. Thus, we hypothesize that:

2635

H4. Use of mobile social networking applications positively affects

mobile addiction
Gender affects communication preferences of people. Women
like indirect communication better than men (Toda et al., 2006).
Men tend to more rely on voice call services while women are more
dependent on internet services (Toda et al., 2006). Similarly, women
are more pleased with communication via email, and are more
likely to use it to build close relationships (Boneva et al., 2001;
McKenna et al., 2002). Women are also more likely to become addicted to mobile phones than men (Jenaro et al., 2007; Takao
et al., 2009). Social networking is an indirect form of communication
for which women have higher preference. Supporting the pervious
ndings regarding the preference of women for indirect communications and their higher potential for becoming mobile phone addicted, we suggest that gender has a moderation effect on the use
of social networking mobile applications. As a result, we posit that:
H5. Gender moderates the relationship between SNS intensity and
the use of mobile social networking applications
H6. Gender moderates the relationship between the use of mobile
social networking applications and mobile addiction

4. Methodology
H3. SNS intensity positively affects the use of mobile social
networking applications
Use of mobile SNS applications can lead to mobile phone addiction. There are three reasons for this argument. First, use of mobile
applications is associated with more frequent usage (Oulasvirta
et al., 2012) as well as more intense use (RuderFinn, 2010). At
the same time, addiction is characterized by repetitive habits and
behaviors (Waal & Mrland, 1999). Based on the theory of optimal
ow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990), this frequent and repetitive mobile
phone checking habit may ultimately lead to mobile phone addiction. Second, getting used to frequent checking of social networking application on mobile phones can grow as a habit (Oulasvirta
et al., 2012). In the long run, this habit can cause the person feel
uncomfortable and irritated when they do not have access to their
mobile phone or when they cannot use it. Such unpleasant feelings
are signs of mobile addiction (Park, 2005).
Finally, mobile social networking applications have special
characteristics that can aggravate the checking habit and lead to
addiction. In comparison to classic mobile applications, such as
calling and texting, SNS mobile applications have four important
characteristics that augment their potential to intensely engage
people. First, it is very likely for ones SNS network size to be larger
his/her mobile phone book size. The average Facebook network
size is 190 (Backstorm, 2011) which is very likely to be higher than
the network size of classic mobile uses such as calling and texting.
Second, most of the communications on SNS target general audience while classic mobile usage usually targets specic audience.
Third, SNS mobile applications provide higher levels of group discussion than classic applications. Fourth, in comparison to classic
mobile uses, people are more likely to use SNS mobile applications
rather than making international phone calls for cost saving. This
characteristic also allows people to nd an audience at any time
of the day because they can be connected to people in different
time zones all over the world. These four characteristics provide
SNS mobile application users with a wider range of audience for
communication. As a result, the user may get engaged with social
networking mobile applications more frequently and will have a
higher vulnerability toward mobile addiction. Thus, we hypothesize that:

4.1. Measurement
We adapted our measurement scales from prior studies and
made minor modications to t the context of our study. Our survey instrument is shown in Appendix A. For social network intensity, a variation of Ellison et al. (2007) instrument was used. To
measure network size, we simply asked respondents to choose
the number of their SNS friends from 7 choices (Less than 10, 10
49, 5099, 100199, 200299, 300399, More than 400). The scale
for mobile phone addiction was adapted from Negahban (2012).
Measure for use of mobile phones to access SNS was developed
by the authors. A panel of experts provided oral and written feedback on the instrument and their suggestions were incorporated
for better wording and re-ordering of some questions. SNS intensity
and mobile addiction constructs were measured using a sevenpoint Likert scale with anchors being strongly disagree and
strongly agree. The use of social networking mobile applications
construct was measured using 7-point Likert scale with anchors
ranging from never to every time (never, rarely, occasionally, sometimes, frequently, often, every time).
4.2. Data collection
We collected our data from students in a large public university
in southwest United States. A total of 214 responses were collected
from students. Students received some extra credit for participating in the survey. After removing incomplete answers, we ended
up with a sample of 209 respondents indicating a usable sample
rate of 97%. In terms of gender, 39% of respondents were females
and 61% were males. In terms of age, 90% of the respondents were
between the age of 18 and 30.
4.3. Measurement model
We used Partial Least Squares (PLS) to validate our model. Using
Smart-PLS software, we rst examined our measurement model and
assessed reliability and validity of the measurement items. Then we
examined the structural model to evaluate the signicance for each
of the hypothesis and calculate the R-square. After we removed one
of the items due to high cross loading, the remaining items loaded

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M. Salehan, A. Negahban / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 26322639

signicantly on their corresponding constructs (Gefen & Straub,

2005). All of the items had a high loading on their corresponding
constructs (above 0.76) which is higher than the cutoff point of
0.40 (Hulland, 1999). The pattern of loadings and cross-loadings
supported internal consistency and discriminant validity. Table 1
shows PLS loadings and cross loadings for allof the items.
In order to examine discriminant validity of the constructs, we
used the procedure proposed by Fornell and Larcker (1981). This
procedure recommends comparing the average variance extracted
(AVE) to the variance shared between the construct and other constructs. Construct reliabilities were also calculated to assess the
convergent validity of the constructs (Fornell & Larcker, 1981).
The composite reliabilities of all of the items were above the
threshold of 0.70 (Hulland, 1999) and Cronbachs alpha for all constructs was above 0.80. The average variance extracted (AVE) for all
of the constructs was above 0.50 (Fornell & Larcker, 1981). Table 2
shows reliability, correlations, and AVEs.Table 3 also shows the
number of respondents for each network size range.
4.4. Structural model
The result of our structural model analysis shows support for
four of the hypotheses. Figure 2 shows model analysis results.
The results show that network size is a signicant predictor of
SNS intensity (b = 0.43) accounting for 18% of variance in the
dependent variable. Thus H1 is supported. SNS intensity
(b = 0.73) and network size (b = 0.15) are signicant predictors of
mobile social networking accounting for 43% in its variance. Thus,
H2 and H3 are supported.
Finally, use of mobile social networking applications is a significant predictor of mobile addiction with a path coefcient of 0.50.
Thus H4 is supported. The proposed moderation effects were not
signicant. As a result, we do not nd support for H5 and H6.
5. Discussion
Building on the body of knowledge regarding mobile addiction,
this study investigates the effect of use of mobile social networking
Table 1
PLS Loadings.

MPA1
MPA2
MPA3
MPA4
MPA5
SNMA1
SNMA2
SNMA3
SNMA4
SNMA5
SNI1
SNI3
SNI4
SNI5
NS

Mean

Std.
deviation

Mobile
addiction

Mobile
SNS Apps

SNS
intensity

Network
size

5.36
4.31
3.82
5.07
3.94
4.77
4.73
4.74
4.68
4.71
5.07
3.54
3.51
3.72
305

1.738
1.722
1.874
1.761
1.788
1.908
1.948
1.969
2.068
1.984
1.880
1.914
1.741
1.941
154.5

0.80
0.81
0.88
0.82
0.76
0.28
0.28
0.29
0.28
0.30
0.21
0.45
0.32
0.43
0.2468

0.20
0.22
0.29
0.20
0.25
0.98
0.99
0.98
0.95
0.99
0.68
0.51
0.48
0.47
0.4067

0.34
0.23
0.34
0.35
0.38
0.62
0.63
0.63
0.58
0.64
0.86
0.87
0.85
0.84
0.4321

0.19
0.23
0.24
0.17
0.16
0.40
0.40
0.42
0.36
0.41
0.41
0.34
0.39
0.33
1

applications on mobile addiction. In this section we discuss the key

ndings of our study followed by the limitations and implications
for research and practice.
5.1. Discussion of key ndings
The results of our study show that use of mobile social networking applications is a signicant predictor of mobile addiction. This
nding is consistent with the theory of optimal ow which posits
that use of technology may lead to addiction. Our study also conrms the recent warnings about the signicant effect of social networking services on peoples lives particularly on young people.
Although previous studies showed that women are more
dependent on internet services (Toda et al., 2006) and are more
likely to become addicted to mobile phones (Jenaro et al., 2007;
Takao et al., 2009), this study did not nd a signicant effect on
the relationship between use of mobile social networking applications and mobile addiction. Consistent with the ndings of Lu et al.
(2011) The ndings of this study suggest that both men and women are facing the same risk of mobile addiction resulted from
use of mobile social networking applications. One possible explanation for this insignicant effect is the unequal proportion of
men and women in this study (39% female vs. 61% male). Another
reason is the possible change in patterns of mobile phone use
among men. Findings regarding the effect of gender on technology
are not conclusive (Bianchi & Phillips, 2005). Initial gender differences are a result of socialization and access to technology. Over
time, it is possible that such gender effects become less strong
and even cease to exist (Bianchi & Phillips, 2005).
The results of our study also show that network size and SNS
intensity are signicant predictors of mobile social networking.
These ndings suggest that the people with larger number of SNS
friends and higher levels of SNS intensity are more likely to install
and use mobile social networking applications on their mobile
phones. People install and use such mobile applications to satisfy
their growing needs to connect and communicate with others.
Higher communication needs will drive people to participate in
the growing trend of use of mobile applications.
Our results also show that network size is an important predictor of SNS intensity. Since people usually have a limited number of
close contacts, the large number of average network size in this
study implies that a high percentage of ones network is consisted
of weak ties such as acquaintances and old classmates. High percentage of weak ties in ones network and the signicant effect
of network size on SNS intensity conrm the ndings of previous
studies regarding the suitability of using social networking services
to connect to weak ties (Donath & Boyd, 2004).
5.2. Limitations
This study has several limitations. First, our samples were
limited to college students. Although some researchers argue that
student data are articial and lack external validity (Gordon, Slade,
& Schmitt, 1986), some other have argued that student data can be
of great contribution (Xu, Ryan, Prybutok, & Wen, 2012). We believe that student data is quite appropriate for the study of mobile

Table 2
Reliability, correlations, and AVEs.

Addiction
Mobile SNS
SNS Intensity
Network Size

AVE

Composite reliability

Cronbachs alpha

Addiction

Mobile SNS

SNS intensity

0.67
0.96
0.73
1.00

0.91
0.99
0.92

0.88
0.99
0.88

0.82
0.29
0.40
0.25

0.98
0.64
0.41

0.86
0.37

1.00

M. Salehan, A. Negahban / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 26322639

Table 3
Distribution of network size values.

Count

<10

1050

5099

100199

200299

300399

>400

10

10

10

32

25

33

89

Fig. 2. Data analysis results.

phone addiction because a large percentage of SNS users are college students. Moreover, younger people are more likely to spend
excessive amount of time on their mobile phones than older people
which makes them more vulnerable to mobile phone-related problems (Bianchi & Phillips, 2005).
Second, the study has been conducted in a country which not
only has a very high mobile phone penetration rate (104%) but also
offers a very high coverage of high-speed mobile internet (3G and
4G). The effect of mobile social networking applications on mobile
addiction may be less signicant in countries with limited mobile
internet access. The results of our study may not be generalizable
to those countries. Future studies may investigate the impact of
mobile penetration as well as mobile network infrastructure and
quality on individuals mobile addiction.
Finally, our sample contained 39% female and 61% male. Future
studies may focus on gender differences in use of mobile social networking applications and its effect on mobile addiction.

5.3. Implications and future research

This study has implications for both theory and practice. This
study contributes to research in three ways. First, to best of our
knowledge, the study is the rst one that investigates the effect
of mobile applications on mobile phone addiction. This is an
important theoretical contribution because of the rapid growth in
the use of mobile applications particularly among the youth. This
warns us against the serious side-effects of intensive use of mobile
devices on the current and future generations. This issue requires
more attention from the academia. Future research can look at
other consequences of intense use of mobile applications.
Second, this study highlights one of the differences between
smartphones and regular mobile phones. Although regular mobile
phones have the potential to make people addicted, smartphones
have a greater potential by providing their users with a larger set
of functionalities. In this study we investigated one of these functionalities (i.e. the use of mobile social networking applications)
and its deep impacts on smartphone users. Future research can
look at other differences between smartphones and regular mobile
phones and nd other side-effects of using smartphones.

2637

Finally, our study shows that large network size and high SNS
intensity drive people to install and use mobile social networking
applications. In this case, the need for constant connectivity is an
important motivation behind utilization of these applications.
Future research can look at other determinants of use of mobile
applications to give academia and practitioners a better understanding of the fast growing rate of popularity of such applications.
In terms of practical contribution, this study has three implications. First, the study shows that mobile social networking applications can be fairly addictive. This can be true about other types of
mobile applications. Considering the harm that such addiction can
cause to the individual and the society specially for the youth
(Hong et al., 2012), the related governmental and non-for-prot
organizations should seriously take this issue into consideration
and plan for taking preventive and corrective actions.
Second, although mobile application developers may benet
from extensive use of their applications, the current trend of addiction is harmful for the society. Complying with current norms
about prioritizing the benets of society over personal benets,
mobile application designers may want to look at the ways to prevent their users from becoming addicted by different means such
as designing built-in features that warn users about their excessive
use of the application.
Finally, this study shows that high SNS intensity is an important
driver of use of social networking mobile applications. These applications should be designed in a way that they support high levels
of SNS activity to be suitable for their users. The important related
design characteristics include high levels of reliability, availability,
accessibility, user friendliness, and short response time. Moreover,
considering the signicant positive effect of network size on the
use of social networking mobile applications, it is important for
these applications to provide users with quick and easy access to
their large network of friends.
6. Conclusion
In this study, we investigate how SNS intensity, network size,
and mobile social networking applications can be associated with
mobile addiction. The result of our study shows that mobile social
networking applications are signicant predictor of mobile addiction. The use of these applications can be inuenced by the network
size and SNS intensity of the user. SNS intensity is also affected by
network size which may be a sign of extensive use of SNS for connecting to weak ties. Overall, the study conrms the recent warnings about the adverse side-effects associated with excessive use
of mobile phones and social networking services and draws attention of academia, governments, and non-prot organizations to
the growing trend of using SNS and mobile applications.
Appendix A. Survey Items

SNI1
SNI2
SNI3
SNI4
SNI5
MPA1

Visiting social networking sites is part of my

everyday activity
I check my social networking site(s) almost every day
I feel out of touch when I havent logged onto my
social networking site(s) for a day
I feel I am part of the community of my social
networking site at the campus
I would be sorry if my social networking site shuts
down
I feel lost when I do not have my mobile phone with
me
(continued on next page)

2638

MPA2
MPA3
MPA4
MPA5
SNMA1
SNMA2
SNMA3
SNMA4
SNMA5

M. Salehan, A. Negahban / Computers in Human Behavior 29 (2013) 26322639

Using the mobile phone takes a lot of my time

I am obsessed with my mobile phone
When I do not have my mobile phone I feel
disconnected
I feel uneasy in places where mobile phone usage is
prohibited
I use the social networking application(s) on my
mobile phone
I use my mobile phone to log into my social network
I check my social networking site using my mobile
phone
I run a social networking application on my mobile
phone
I use my mobile phone social networking application
to connect to my social network

Appendix B. Figures
See Figs. B.1 and B.2.
Appendix C. Tables
See Tables C.1C.3.
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