Relationship Between the Use of Mobile-Based Social Networks and the General Health Among Employees in the South of Iran

Background: One of the most challenging aspects of today's technology is mobile social networking which has had a different effect on the health and social life of individuals. The goal of this study was to investigate the relationship between the use of mobile-based social networks and general health. Methods: This analytical and cross-sectional correlation study was done on 295 staff of Bushehr University of Medical Sciences in 2018 -2019. The data was collected using the general health and social networking addiction questionnaires. A random sampling method was used to select the participants. Descriptive statistics, T-test, one-way ANOVA and Pearson correlation coefficient were used for data analysis via the SPSS V. 24 software. Results: Of two hundred ninety-five participants 153 (51.7%) were male and 142 (48.3%) were female. The mean age of the participants was 36.32±6.61years.  There is a statistically significant relationship between mean score of social network addiction with demographic characteristics of sex, marital status. There is also a significant relationship between the level of general health and marital status and the amount of daily use of social networking. There is a direct and significant relationship between the amount of use of social networks and general health (P<0.05). Conclusions: It seems that men and single individuals are often reported higher due to their tendency to receive information and news and to have much more leisure times. Given the positive impact of marriage on mental health in most studies, there is a need for more detailed research on the relationship between general health and marriage status.