Is facebook involvement associated with academic engagement among Filipino university students? A cross-sectional study

The use of Facebook among university students is a controversial issue in the literature as studies point to both positive and negative impacts of this social networking platform. However, little is known about how students’ personal Facebook use may relate to specific domains of academic engagement. In this study, the association of Facebook intensity dimensions (i.e., persistence, boredom, overuse and self-expression) with domains of academic engagement (i.e., agentic, behavioural, cognitive and emotional engagement) was assessed among 700 Filipino undergraduate students (n_female = 402 female and n_male = 298 male; M_age = 19.80, SD_age = 4.26). The results of hierarchical regression analyses showed that self-expression positively predicted agentic engagement even after controlling for relevant demographic covariates such as age, gender and year level. Boredom positively predicted behavioural engagement, while overuse negatively predicted behavioural engagement. The results provide interesting insights into the adaptive and maladaptive aspects of Facebook involvement in the academic context.