Research Article

Rethinking Self-Efficacy in the Digital Age: When Confidence Meets the Overload of Social Messages

Huang Shang Yan 1 *
More Detail
1 Department of International Trade, Overseas Chinese University, Taichung 40721, Taiwan* Corresponding Author
International Journal of Social Sciences and Artistic Innovations, 5(4), December 2025, 38-45, https://doi.org/10.35745/ijssai2025v05.04.0020
Submitted: 04 October 2025, Published: 30 December 2025
OPEN ACCESS   66 Views   82 Downloads
Download Full Text (PDF)

ABSTRACT

In the digital era, the constant influx of social messages has amplified both the frequency and complexity of interpersonal communication. This study explores the interplay among self-efficacy, academic pressure, and academic procrastination, with a particular focus on the effects of social message overload. Drawing on the frameworks of internet behavior dependence and structural equation modeling (SEM), the study collected 476 responses, of which 456 were valid for analysis. The empirical findings indicate three major outcomes: (1) self-efficacy is positively associated with academic pressure in the context of social message overload; (2) academic pressure is a significant predictor of academic procrastination; and (3) self-efficacy does not exert a direct effect on academic procrastination.
Keywords: Social messages, Self-efficacy, Academic pressure, Academic procrastination, Communication overload

CITATION (APA)

Yan, H. S. (2025). Rethinking Self-Efficacy in the Digital Age: When Confidence Meets the Overload of Social Messages. International Journal of Social Sciences and Artistic Innovations, 5(4), 38-45. https://doi.org/10.35745/ijssai2025v05.04.0020

REFERENCES

  1. Appel, H., Gerlach, A.L., & Crusius, J. (2016). The interplay between social comparison tendencies, social comparison orientation, and emotional responses to social comparisons on social networking sites. Current Opinion in Psychology, 9, 44–49.
  2. Bandura, A. (1997). Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control; New York, NY, USA: W. H. Freeman.
  3. Bandura, A., & Cervone, D. (1986). Differential engagement of self-reactive influences in cognitive motivation. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 38(1), 92–113.
  4. Blackwell, D., Leaman, C., Tramposch, R., Osborne, C., & Liss, M. (2017). Extraversion, neuroticism, attachment style and fear of missing out as predictors of social media use and addiction. Personality and Individual Differences, 116, 69–72.
  5. Burke, M., & Kraut, R.E. (2016). The relationship between Facebook use and well-being depends on communication type and tie strength. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 21(4), 265–281.
  6. Chen, P.H. (2024). The Overexposed Generation: Why Teenagers Are Less Happy, Feel Less Secure, and Have Lower Self-Esteem; Seattle, WA, USA: Parenting Press.
  7. Chen, Y.H. (2018). The impact of academic pressure and school interpersonal relationships on learning self-efficacy among private high school students. Master’s Thesis, Southern Taiwan University of Science and Technology, Tainan, Taiwan.
  8. Chi, H.-S., & Yeh, N.-C. (2017). Health-related fitness learning and knowledge construction in a social networking context: A study on Facebook social media intervention. Journal of Contemporary Communication and Information Society, 32, 151–194.
  9. Deursen, A.J.A.M., Bolle, C.L., Hegner, S.M., & Kommers, P.A.M. (2015). Modeling habitual and addictive smartphone behavior: The role of smartphone usage types and user personality. Computers in Human Behavior, 45, 411–420.
  10. Eccles, J.S. (2007). Families, schools, and developing achievement-related motivations and engagement. In Handbook of Socialization: Theory and Research; New York, NY, USA: Guilford Press, pp. 665–691.
  11. Egger, O., & Rauterberg, G.W.M. (1996). Internet Behaviour and Addiction; Zurich, Switzerland: Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.
  12. Fan, X., & Hui, C. (2025). Academic stress and burnout reduction through mandala and mindfulness-based interventions in adolescents. Behavioral Sciences, 15(4), 439.
  13. Ferrari, J.R., O’Callaghan, J., & Newbegin, I. (2009). Prevalence of procrastination in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia: Arousal and avoidance delays among adults. North American Journal of Psychology, 11(1), 121–133.
  14. Festinger, L. (1954). A theory of social comparison processes. Human Relations, 7(2), 117–140.
  15. Hair, J., Anderson, R., Tatham, R., & Black, W. (1998). Multivariate Data Analysis; Upper Saddle River, NJ, USA: Prentice Hall.
  16. Hayes, A.F. (2009). Beyond Baron and Kenny: Statistical mediation analysis in the new millennium. Communication Monographs, 76(4), 408–420.
  17. Huang, S.Y. (2024). Exploring the influence of internet literacy on game addiction behaviors from a perspective of physical and mental health. Journal of Electrical Systems, 20(6), 5524–5536.
  18. INSIDE. (2025). Preventing harm to adolescent mental health! TikTok to adjust its content recommendation algorithm. Available online: https://www.inside.com.tw/article/26044-tiktok-to-adjust-its-algorithm-to-avoid-negative-reinforcement (accessed on July 10, 2025).
  19. Juvonen, J., & Graham, S. (2014). Peer harassment in school: The plight of the vulnerable and victimized. Annual Review of Psychology, 65, 159–185.
  20. Kaplan, H.I., & Sadock, B.J. (2003). Synopsis of Psychiatry: Behavioral Sciences/Clinical Psychiatry; Philadelphia, PA, USA: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
  21. Keles, B., McCrae, N., & Grealish, A. (2020). A systematic review: The influence of social media on depression, anxiety and psychological distress in adolescents. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth, 25(1), 79–93.
  22. Kim, K.R., & Seo, E.H. (2015). The relationship between procrastination and academic performance: A meta-analysis. Personality and Individual Differences, 82, 26–33.
  23. Klassen, R.M., Krawchuk, L.L., & Rajani, S. (2010). Academic procrastination of undergraduates: Low self-efficacy to self-regulate predicts higher levels of procrastination. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 34(4), 272–281.
  24. Kuhl, J. (2000). A functional–design approach to motivation and self-regulation: The dynamics of personality systems interactions. In Handbook of Self-Regulation; Boekaerts, M., Pintrich, P.R., & Zeidner, M., Eds.; San Diego, CA, USA: Academic Press, pp. 111–169.
  25. Kuss, D.J., & Griffiths, M.D. (2011). Online social networking and addiction—A review of the psychological literature. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 8(9), 3528–3552.
  26. Lazarus, R.S., & Folkman, S. (2000). Stress, Appraisal, and Coping; New York, NY, USA: Springer Publishing Company.
  27. Liao, Y.J. (2001). A preliminary study on virtual community cohesion. Journal of Contemporary Communication and Information Society, 1, 57–83.
  28. Lightsey, O.L., & Hulsey, C.D. (2002). Impulsivity, coping, stress, and problem gambling among university students. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 49(2), 202–211.
  29. Liu, C.-Y. (2001). Exploring the phenomenon of online dating through the perspectives of interpersonal relationship theory and the theory of planned behavior. Master’s Thesis, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
  30. Livingstone, S., & Sefton-Green, J. (2016). The Class: Living and Learning in the Digital Age; New York, NY, USA: New York University Press.
  31. Ludwig, K.B., & Pittman, J.F. (1999). Adolescent prosocial values and self-efficacy in relation to delinquency, risky sexual behavior, and drug use. Youth & Society, 30(4), 461–482.
  32. Mark, G., Gudith, D., & Klocke, U. (2008). The cost of interrupted work: More speed and stress. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI 2008), Florence, Italy, April 5–10, 2008.
  33. OECD. (2025). The Impact of Digital Technologies on Students’ Learning; Paris, France: OECD Publishing.
  34. Özmen, S., Yalçın, İ., & Arslan, G. (2025). Feasibility of a guided web-based procrastination intervention for college students (“GetStarted”). Internet Interventions, 33, 100875.
  35. Preacher, K.J., & Hayes, A.F. (2008). Asymptotic and resampling strategies for assessing and comparing indirect effects in multiple mediator models. Behavior Research Methods, 40(3), 879–891.
  36. Prensky, M. (2005). Listen to the natives. Educational Leadership, 63(4), 8–13.
  37. Rosen, L.D., Lim, A.F., Carrier, L.M., & Cheever, N.A. (2014). An empirical examination of the educational impact of text message interruptions during college lectures. Educational Psychology, 34(5), 627–637.
  38. Ryan, R.M., & Deci, E.L. (2000). Intrinsic and extrinsic motivations: Classic definitions and new directions. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 54–67.
  39. Salmela-Aro, K., & Upadyaya, K. (2014). School burnout and engagement in the context of demands–resources model. Developmental Psychology, 50(3), 601–613.
  40. Schouwenburg, H.C. (2013). Academic procrastination: Theoretical notions, measurement, and research. In Counseling the Procrastinator in Academic Settings; Schouwenburg, H.C., Lay, C., Pychyl, T.A., & Ferrari, J.R., Eds.; Washington, DC, USA: American Psychological Association, pp. 111–169.
  41. Sirois, F.M., & Pychyl, T.A. (2013). Procrastination and the priority of short-term mood regulation: Consequences for future self. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 7(2), 115–127.
  42. Solomon, L.J., & Rothblum, E.D. (1984). Academic procrastination: Frequency and cognitive-behavioral correlates. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 31(4), 503–509.
  43. Steel, P. (2007). The nature of procrastination: A meta-analytic and theoretical review of quintessential self-regulatory failure. Psychological Bulletin, 133(1), 65–94.
  44. Steel, P., & Klingsieck, K.B. (2016). Procrastination and the self: Self-regulation, self-efficacy, and self-determination. In Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences; Cham, Switzerland: Springer, pp. 1–9.
  45. Tafesse, W., Aguilar, M.P., Sayed, S., & Tariq, U. (2024). Digital Overload, Coping Mechanisms, and Student Engagement: An Empirical Investigation Based on the S-O-R Framework. SAGE Open, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440241236087
  46. TECH2IPO. (2025). You are not truly happy: Why using social networking sites can trigger mental health issues. Available online: https://www.inside.com.tw/article/5676-facebooks-mental-health-problem (accessed on July 10, 2025).
  47. Twenge, J.M., & Campbell, W.K. (2018). Associations between screen time and lower psychological well-being among children and adolescents: Evidence from a population-based study. Preventive Medicine Reports, 12, 271–283.
  48. Vogel, E.A., Rose, J.P., Roberts, L.R., & Eckles, K. (2014). Social comparison, social media, and self-esteem. Psychology of Popular Media Culture, 3(4), 206–222.
  49. Weng, S.H. (2025, July 2). In the era of social media, remember to “knock on the door”—Don’t become a bomber. Available online: https://www.thenewslens.com/article/60770 (accessed on July 10, 2025).
  50. Wills, T.A., Sandy, J.M., Yaeger, A.M., Cleary, S.D., & Shinar, O. (2001). Coping dimensions, life stress, and adolescent substance use: A latent growth analysis. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 110(2), 309–323. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-843X.110.2.309
  51. Young, K.S. (1998). Internet addiction: The emergence of a new clinical disorder. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 1(3), 237–244.