Investigating the relationship between social networks and social health of students

Abstract

Social networks are new media and many people, especially students, are unfamiliar with various effects of these networks on their lives; hence, it seems necessary to conduct more research on their effects on students’ lives and health conditions. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between social networks and social health of a group of students. The study used a descriptive-correlational approach. The study population consisted of all the students at Islamic Azad University, East Tehran Branch, Iran, among whom 200 individuals were enrolled using simple random sampling method. Young’s Internet Addiction Test and Keyes’ Social Health Questionnaire were used to collect the data. The data was analyzed using one-sample t-test, Pearson correlation test, and regression analysis. Based on the findings, there was a significant relationship between the students’ social networking activities and their social health.   Keywords: Social health; social networks; new media