Examining family and social media effects on adolescent academic performance

Abstract

Purpose: The study explored how the family environment, social media use, and psychological well-being affect the academic performance of secondary school students in Kenya, contrary to other studies that study these variables independently. The study integrated both Bronfenbrenner's Bioecological Model of Human Development and Digital Ecological Systems Theory.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was used to collect data from 1,656 students across various educational settings, and the data were analyzed using SPSS 27 (for descriptive analyses) and SmartPLS-SEM 4 to estimate direct and indirect relationships among variables.

Results: Results showed that positive social media use widely influences academic performance through psychological well-being and a supportive family environment, as well as through academic success. Psychological well-being was found to play a strong mediating role between family environment, social media use, and academic performance, with gender and other demographic differences in effect size being larger for males.

Implications: This study concludes that social and psychological aspects affect academic performance; thus, its implications stress the importance for schools to build capacity in guidance and counseling, integrate mental health support into the curriculum, work with families to build an enabling learning environment, and engage students in balanced use of social media to enhance their well-being and academic performance.