Facebook addiction among Polish undergraduate students: Validity of measurement and relationship with personality and well-being

Facebook addiction has been suggested as a potential behavioral addiction emerging from the framework of the theory and research on social networking sites addiction and Internet addiction. Previous studies showed that Facebook addiction is related to specific personality traits and well-being. However, there is still a scarcity of studies showing the relative contribution of different personality characteristics to Facebook addiction within an integrated model. In addition, few studies have investigated the unique contribution of Facebook addiction in terms of explaining different facets of well-being above and beyond personality characteristics previously shown to be related to psychosocial functioning. The present study demonstrates validation of the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale (BFAS) in the sample of Polish students and a tentative integrated model of potential Facebook addiction personality risk factors. BFAS was administered to 1157 students. In addition, participants were asked about demographic variables, and personality traits (Big Five, self-esteem, self-efficacy, narcissism), loneliness, social anxiety, and well-being indicators were measured. BFAS had acceptable fit with the data and demonstrated good reliability. The investigated model showed that Facebook addiction was related to higher extraversion, narcissism, loneliness, social anxiety, and lower general self-efficacy. Facebook addiction was further related to impoverished well-being (impaired general health, decreased sleep quality, and higher perceived stress), which is congruent with previous findings.