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Adult attachment and problematic social media use: a daily measure study
Alessandro Musetti1, Marco Sforza2, Virginia Pupi3
1Department of Humanities, Social Sciences and Cultural Industries, University of Parma, Parma, Italy.
Addictive Behaviors
|May 2, 2026
Summary
Attachment anxiety, specifically preoccupied attachment, predicts problematic social media use (PSMU). This longitudinal study suggests individuals with negative self-views may use social media to cope.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Social Media Studies
- Attachment Theory
Background:
- Attachment theory offers a framework for understanding problematic social media use (PSMU).
- PSMU is linked to attachment anxiety, but the role of attachment avoidance is unclear.
- Previous studies often used cross-sectional designs, limiting causal inference.
Purpose of the Study:
- To longitudinally examine the relationship between attachment styles and PSMU.
- To investigate how positive/negative self and other representations predict daily PSMU.
- To differentiate intensive from maladaptive social media engagement.
Main Methods:
- A 14-day daily diary study with a community sample of 89 adults.
- Self-report measures assessed attachment styles and PSMU symptoms (mood modification, relapse, withdrawal, conflict).
- Linear mixed-effects modeling analyzed the longitudinal data.
Main Results:
- Higher baseline preoccupied attachment significantly predicted increased daily PSMU.
- Findings suggest a negative self-representation and positive other-representation (anxious attachment) increases PSMU vulnerability.
- PSMU may serve as a dysfunctional compensatory strategy for individuals with anxious attachment.
Conclusions:
- Preliminary longitudinal evidence supports the link between anxious attachment and PSMU.
- Individuals with preoccupied attachment may be more vulnerable to problematic social media engagement.
- Further research with larger samples is needed to confirm these findings.
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