Virtual socialisation and social media addiction as mediators in the relationship between loneliness and life satisfaction

This study examined the relationships between loneliness, social media addiction, virtual socialisation, and life satisfaction among youth in Türkiye, focusing on the mediating roles of virtual socialisation and social media addiction. Using a cross-sectional and quantitative design, data were collected online from 800 participants. The findings indicate that loneliness increases both social media addiction and virtual socialisation while reducing life satisfaction. Additionally, social media addiction diminishes life satisfaction, whereas virtual socialisation enhances it. Furthermore, both virtual socialisation and social media addiction play a mediating role in the link between loneliness and life satisfaction. These findings underscore the dual role of social media use, highlighting the need to mitigate the negative effects of social media addiction while acknowledging the potential benefits of virtual socialisation in promoting youth well-being.