Personality predicts social media addiction: a cross-sectional study in Greek

Background: Personality traits may affect individuals’ vulnerability to social media addiction. Aim: To examine the impact of personality traits on social media addiction. Methods: We collected our data through an online survey. Adults’ social media users could participate in our study. We conducted a cross-sectional study during July 2024 in Greece. We gauged personality with the Big Five Inventory‐10 (BFI‐10), and social media addiction with the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS). We performed multivariable linear regression analysis to eliminate confounding. Results: The personality trait “extraversion” was related with increased social media addiction (adjusted beta = 0.41, 95% CI = 0.12 to 0.69, p-value = 0.005). Moreover, the personality trait “agreeableness” was related with reduced social media addiction (adjusted beta = -0.62, 95% CI = -0.92 to -0.32, p-value < 0.001). In addition, the personality trait “conscientiousness” was related with reduced social media addiction (adjusted beta = -0.80, 95% CI = -1.04 to -0.57, p-value < 0.001). Levels of social media addiction was higher among females (adjusted beta = 2.22, 95% CI = 1.07 to 3.36, p-value < 0.001). Decreased age was associated with increased social media addiction (adjusted beta = -0.09, 95% CI = -0.15 to -0.04, p-value = 0.001). Conclusion: We found a positive relationship between the personality trait “extraversion” and social media addiction. On the contrary, we found a negative relationship between the personality traits “agreeableness” and “conscientiousness” with social media addiction. Personality traits affect levels of social media addiction among individuals, and therefore policy makers and healthcare professionals in mental health should take into their consideration the personality of social media users.