The Effect of Personality Traits on Social Media Addiction

This study investigated the predictive power of the Big Five personality traits on social media addiction among 798 participants in Konya, Türkiye. Structural validity of the Social Media Addiction Scale (SMAS) and the Five-Factor Personality Inventory was confirmed through Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). Multiple linear regression analysis indicates that personality traits significantly predict addiction and account for 19.4% (R² = .194) of the total variance. Methodological robustness was confirmed through VIF values (1.15–1.32) and procedural safeguards for the independence of observations to justify the Durbin-Watson statistic (0.834) within the cross-sectional framework. Conscientiousness (Beta = -0.301, p < 0.001) and Agreeableness (Beta = -0.166, p = 0.001) appeared to be protective factors while Openness to Experience (Beta = 0.119, p = 0.023) and Neuroticism (Beta = 0.106, p = 0.038) emerged as significant risk factors. These findings suggest that individual personality differences are notable determinants of digital well-being and imply that interventions should focus on enhancing self-regulation and psychological resilience in algorithmic environments.