Needs and Facebook addiction: How important are psychological well-being and performance-approach goals?

Previous studies have highlighted the negative effect of Facebook addiction on students’ academic performance. The aim of the current research was to explore the effects of students’ needs on Facebook addiction by considering the moderating effect of psychological well-being. Moreover, the moderating effect of performance-approach goals on the relationship between Facebook addiction and academic performance was explored. A total of 343 university students from Thailand were recruited to participate in this study. The hypothesized model was analysed using the Partial Least Squares technique. The results demonstrate that the effects of social and entertainment needs on Facebook addiction were significant, while recognition and information needs had no effect on Facebook addiction. The results provide evidence of the moderating effect of psychological well-being on the relationship between entertainment needs and Facebook addiction. The findings also revealed that Facebook addiction has a negative association with academic performance and that performance-approach goals positively moderate this relationship. Our findings contribute to the literature on Facebook addiction by testing the moderating effects of psychological well-being and performance-approach goals.