The Effect of Excessive Use of Virtual Social Networks on the Academic Performance of Bamyan University Students: The Mediating Role of Qualityof Sleep

Background: The social networks are used today as one of the important tools in establishing communication between people. In addition to the advantages, it can also have several disadvantages and problems, the negative effects of which can be seen on the academic performance of students. Objective: This study was designed to investigate the role of excessive use of virtual social networks on the academic performance of Bamyan University students with a mediating role of quality of sleep. Methodology: The present study has a descriptive-correlational design. A total of 180 Bamyan University students (90 male and 90 female) were selected by convenience sampling method and responded to the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Questionnaire (Buysee et al., 1989), Yang Internet and Social Network Addiction Questionnaire, Demographic Questions, and GPA of last semester. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation test and hierarchical regression analysis by means of SPSS-24. Results: The results showed that the excessive use of social networks had a significant negative correlation with academic performance and predicts it inversely (T = -9.338, ß = - 730) and There is also a significant relationship between excessive use of social networks and quality of sleep (T = 15.726, ß = .763). There was a significant relationship between social and sleep quality (T = 15.726, ß = .763). But sleep quality could not play a mediating role between excessive use of social networks and students' academic achievement and showed that this relationship is not significant (T = -. 174, ß = -. 014). Conclusion: Excessive use of social networks has negative effects on students' academic achievement and quality of sleep. For this purpose, it is necessary to manage the use of social networks for optimal use in order to achieve high academic achievement and good quality of slee