Page No: 330-341
Shruthi Balaji Babar , and Aditi Gupta
Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research, Chennai
This study examined the impact of social media use on attention, verbal fluency, and
prospective memory among late adolescents. A cross-sectional design with purposive
sampling was used to collect data from 115 adolescents aged 15 to 18 years.
Standardized tools including the Social Media Use Scale (SMUS), Digit Span Test,
Controlled Oral Word Association Test (FAS Test), and Prospective Memory Concerns
Questionnaire (PMCQ) were administered. Results indicated that higher social media
use was significantly associated with greater self-reported prospective memory
concerns, though no significant impairments were found in attentional or verbal fluency
tasks. Findings suggest that while core attentional capacities remain stable, higherorder
cognitive processes like strategic monitoring may be more vulnerable to digital
distractions. Implications for educational strategies and mental health interventions
are discussed.