There’s a link between social media addiction and binge drinking, says new study

How many times have you come across people from your Instagram or Snapchat list post right after or during a night of partying? If you ask us, we’d say many. Turns out, there’s a reason why this happens. A new study has found a link between college students who binge drink and social media addiction.

The study compares the students who never binge drank to those who did and found that the students who did were more likely to have posted on any social media platform while they were intoxicated or drinking.

"During these times when young students are feeling disinhibited by alcohol, they may be even more likely than usual to post inappropriate material without considering the future impact," said lead author Natalie A. Ceballos from the Texas State University in San Marcos.

Published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, the study researched 425 undergraduate students between 18 and 25. They asked them about their alcohol habits, how much and how frequently they drank or if they ever “binged.”

The research team also asked them about how they used social media, i.e. Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. They specifically asked if they posted on social media while they were intoxicated or drinking. Additionally they were asked if they ever felt they were addicted to the social media platforms and that if they experienced negatives consequences because of their social media use.

The study found that the students who binged showed more intensity towards social media, meaning they were more emotionally invested in their social media usage.

The researchers concluded by saying that the link between social media and binge drinking can be used for innovative interventions that can reduce social media addiction among the youth.