Links between social media, bedtime smartphone use, sleep quality, and executive function difficulties in adults

Smartphone use has become ubiquitous among young adults, raising concerns about its potential impact on sleep and executive functioning in daily life. This study examined the relationships between problematic smartphone use (PSU), social media frequency, bedtime smartphone use, sleep quality, and self-reported executive function (EF) difficulties in a sample of 270 Argentinean university students. Using a correlational, cross-sectional design, participants completed self-report measures of PSU (Mobile Phone Dependency Test), sleep quality (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Inventory), and executive functioning difficulties in working memory (WM) and inhibitory control (IC) (Adult Executive Functioning Inventory). Path analysis was conducted to examine direct and indirect associations among variables. Higher social media frequency was significantly associated with increased PSU and more frequent smartphone use at bedtime. In turn, PSU and bedtime smartphone use were associated with poorer sleep quality. Poorer sleep quality and higher PSU scores were both linked to more frequent self-reported difficulties in WM and IC. Two significant indirect pathways were identified linking social media use to EF difficulties: one through increased bedtime smartphone use and poorer sleep quality, and another through increased PSU. A possible interpretation is that smartphone use might be linked to everyday executive functioning in adults through both sleep-related and dependence-related mechanisms. Importantly, social media use emerged as a key covariate of both bedtime smartphone use and PSU, underscoring its role as a potential risk factor for sleep problems, smartphone dependence, and negative cognitive outcomes in daily life.