The Effects of Social Media on GPA, Conscientiousness, and Social Interaction

The main goal of this study is to determine the relationship between social media and college students. Specifically, we examined the effects of social media on GPA, social interaction, and conscientiousness. Our population for this study includes students ranging from 18-22 years old from a college in Virginia (N= 21).The independent variable is the amount of time students are on social media, while the dependent variables are GPA, social interaction, and conscientiousness. The students filled out 3 scales: Social Media Time Usage Scale, the Big 5, and Social Interaction Anxiety Scale. We hypothesized that students who spend more time on social media will have a lower GPA, lower social interaction, and lower conscientiousness. On the other hand, the students who spend less time on social media will have a higher GPA, higher social interaction, and higher conscientiousness