Why social media addiction fatigues college nursing students: The chain mediating roles of academic engagement and procrastination

Background Social media addiction (SMA) is increasingly prevalent among students and has been linked to negative academic and psychological outcomes. Understanding the mechanisms through which SMA impacts student well-being, particularly fatigue, remains limited in the nursing education context. Aim This study investigated the chain mediating role of academic engagement and academic procrastination in the relationship between social media addiction and general fatigue among college nursing students in Northern Ghana. Methods A cross-sectional analytical survey was conducted among 373 nursing students using validated instruments measuring social media addiction, academic engagement, academic procrastination, and general fatigue. The hypothesized relationships among the variables were tested using structural equation modeling (SEM) in R, with the lavaan package. Results The average SMA score was 16.36 ± 4.54, with a prevalence of 7%. The mean scores for academic engagement, procrastination, and general fatigue were 4.25 ± 1.29, 3.06 ± 0.60, and 2.53 ± 0.64, respectively. SMA significantly predicted lower academic engagement (β = -0.29, p  < 0.001) and higher academic procrastination (β = 0.32, p  < 0.001). Academic engagement negatively predicted both procrastination (β = -0.20, p  < 0.001) and general fatigue (β = -0.16, p  = 0.003), while academic procrastination positively predicted general fatigue (β = 0.14, p  = 0.012). The direct effect of SMA on general fatigue was not significant (β = 0.02, p  = 0.801). However, significant indirect effects were found through academic engagement (β = 0.06, p  < 0.001), academic procrastination (β = 0.07, p  = 0.004), and a serial mediation pathway involving both mediators (β = 0.08, p  = 0.047), indicating full mediation. Conclusion SMA contributes to general fatigue among nursing students entirely through reduced academic engagement and increased procrastination. Interventions aimed at promoting academic engagement and reducing procrastination may mitigate the fatigue associated with excessive social media use in this population.