Beyond Likes and Shares: Analyzing Social Media's Impact on Socio-Psychological Behavior of University Students of Lahore, Pakistan

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Aim of the Study: The aim is to explore how media usage impacts students' academic achievement, social conduct, and emotional health. Furthermore, the goal is to pinpoint potential approaches to minimize unfavorable consequences while optimizing positive ones Methodology: The impact of consuming media on students' socio-psychological behavior was examined using a cross-sectional quantitative study methodology. 200 undergraduate students from universities between the ages of 18 and 25 were recruited utilizing a convenient sample technique from Punjab University and Lahore College for Women University in Lahore, Pakistan. By using scale of Social Networking Sites Usage & Needs (SNSUN), which has good reliability (=.922), Ali, Danaee, and Firdaus created a self-constructed scale (2020). Findings: The study investigated the associations between student conduct and well-being on social media. The data were examined with Pearson correlation testing. The findings revealed a substantial correlation between uses of social media on respondents' social behavior, language use, privacy, and health. However, there was no conclusive connection between using social media and academic success. To study at the disparities in social media usage based on socioeconomic status an independent sample t-test was conducted Conclusion: The socio-psychological behaviors of students were dramatically affected by their usage of social media. WhatsApp was favored for social interactions, although media consumption did not significantly affect academic performance. But social behavior and media use, as well as student language and media use, were found to be significantly correlated. The use of media does not appear to be influenced by socioeconomic position. In order to fully comprehend the effects of social media and design effective utilization strategies the study emphasizes and suggests the need for additional research.