تحلیل کیفی تجربه تنهایی هیجانی در میان کاربران افراطی شبکه‌های اجتماعی

بهاره هاشمی; میلاد زارع; پریا  کمالی

Authors

Bahareh Hashemi Department of General Psychology, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran Author
Milad Zare Department of Clinical Psychology, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran
Pariya Kamali Department of Cognitive Psychology, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran Author

Keywords:

Emotional loneliness, excessive users, social media, thematic analysis, social validation, cyberspace

Abstract

This study aimed to qualitatively analyze the experience of emotional loneliness among excessive social media users and identify the underlying psychological, affective, and relational patterns embedded in this experience. This qualitative study was conducted using thematic analysis. The participants were 22 excessive social media users living in Tehran, selected through purposive and theoretical sampling. Inclusion criteria included using social media for at least five hours per day during the previous six months, experiencing difficulty reducing social media use, and reporting feelings of loneliness or emotional emptiness in relation to online engagement. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews. Interviews continued until theoretical saturation was reached; saturation occurred at the nineteenth interview, and three additional interviews were conducted to ensure data adequacy. The data were analyzed using NVivo software following the phases of thematic analysis, including familiarization with the data, initial coding, searching for themes, reviewing themes, defining and naming themes, and producing the final analytic report. Data analysis resulted in 103 initial codes, 18 subthemes, and five main themes. The main themes were continuous presence and fragmented intimacy, social comparison and emotional depletion, dependence on digital validation, using social media as an escape from emotional emptiness, and erosion of the boundary between the real self and the performative self. The findings indicated that excessive users, despite constant online connectivity, experienced a deep sense of being unseen, unmet emotional needs, and a decline in the quality of intimate relationships. Emotional loneliness among excessive social media users is not merely a consequence of insufficient communication; rather, it emerges from a complex cycle of seeking intimacy, engaging in social comparison, depending on feedback, avoiding emotional confrontation, and gradually replacing deep relationships with superficial digital interactions. Psychological interventions should focus on rebuilding intimate bonds, emotion regulation, digital emotional literacy, and reducing dependence on online validation.

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