Social media use in lectures mediates the relationship between procrastination and problematic smartphone use

Problematic smartphone use (PSU) has been consistently shown to relate to dysfunctional behaviors and negative daily life outcomes, including in academic context. One explanatory factor could be procrastination - yet it has not been studied how procrastination is related to PSU. The aim of this research was to study that relationship. Participants were 366 Estonian university students who responded to the Estonian Smartphone Addiction Proneness Scale, Aitken Procrastination Inventory, and items regarding social media use in lectures via an online survey. Correlation analysis and structural equation modelling were used to investigate the relationships between procrastination, PSU, and social media use in lectures. The results showed that procrastination and PSU and were positively correlated. Furthermore, social media use in lectures completely mediated that relationship, suggesting that students who tend to procrastinate may engage in more social media use in lectures, and that may be a driver of PSU. In addition to theoretical contribution, this study could contribute to discussions on ICT use in educational context.