Psychometric Validation of the Arabic Doomscrolling Scale Among Saudi Young-Adult Social Media Users: Factor Structure, Measurement Invariance Across Gender, and Digital Correlates
Elsokkary EM
Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 0 citations
How it was studied
- Design
- Cross-sectional study (classified by our AI screen)
- Studied in
- People
- Main outcome
- Health markers and function
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Independent funding
- University or hospital
- Deanship of Scientific Research, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University (IMSIU)
Based on 1 listed funder(s) and full-text disclosure statement.
Publication
- Published
- 2026-08-30 · Behav Sci (Basel) · vol. 16 · issue 9 · p. 1528
- Publisher
- Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
- Cited
- 0 citations · more than 81% of similar papers · 0.0× the field average
- References
- 25 works
- Access
- Open access (journal) · CC-BY
- Research areas
- Impact of Technology on Adolescents · Communication and COVID-19 Impact · Media Influence and Health
- Keywords
- doomscrolling, scale validation, factor structure, measurement invariance, gender differences, young adults, social media use, fear of missing out, social media addiction, digital well-being, Saudi Arabia
1 author
From SA
- Emadeldin M. Elsokkary · correspondingImam Mohammad ibn Saud Islamic University
Abstract
Doomscrolling has emerged as a specific pattern of digital engagement involving habitual and immersive exposure to negative online news, yet no published Arabic validation of the Doomscrolling Scale has been identified. This study aimed to translate the Doomscrolling Scale into Arabic and evaluate preliminary psychometric evidence for its use among Saudi young-adult social media users by examining its factor structure, reliability, measurement invariance across gender, and convergent, discriminant, and incremental validity. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted with 793 Saudi social media users aged 18-25 years. The sample was randomly split into exploratory factor analysis (EFA; n = 396) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA; n = 397) subsamples. Parallel analysis and EFA supported a one-factor structure. Ordinal CFA using WLSMV in the independent CFA subsample supported the 15-item one-factor model, scaled χ2(90) = 216.48, p p < 0.001). The 15-item Arabic Doomscrolling Scale has preliminary support as an internally consistent and valid research measure for assessing doomscrolling among Saudi young-adult social media users.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher (CC BY).
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