The Impact of Pre-Sleep Social Media Use on Sleep Quality Among College Students: The Mediating Effect of Revenge Bedtime Procrastination

Abstract

Based on the contemporary context of generally poor sleep quality among college students and the increasing influence of social media on their daily lives, this study examines the college student population using a mixed methods approach to explore the underlying psychological mechanisms through which pre-sleep social media use affects individual sleep quality, with revenge bedtime procrastination as a mediating variable. The research employed questionnaire surveys (N = 137) combined with social media data mining (639 comments from platforms including Douyin, Bilibili, Weibo, and Xiaohongshu) for triangulation purposes. Data analysis revealed that, compared to frequency, the duration of pre-sleep social media use more significantly predicted revenge bedtime procrastination (τ_b = 0.390, p < 0.001). Revenge bedtime procrastination directly contributed to decreased sleep quality (β = 0.199). Structural equation modeling further confirmed the mediating role of revenge bedtime procrastination in the social media use to sleep quality pathway (indirect effect = 15.76, p < 0.05). Simultaneously, text sentiment analysis identified a widespread psychological motivation among students to compensate for perceived daytime freedom loss by extending nighttime social media use. However, this behavior induced a sense of time loss and control, ultimately forming a vicious cycle of compensation and loss of control that exacerbates sleep quality issues. The study reveals the deep psychological pathway through which social media affects sleep quality at the behavioral mechanism level.