Examining Nature and Magnitude of Digital Fatigue impacting Personal Competency of adolescent students in South Bangalore
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.66635/getxjy68Keywords:
General Self-Efficacy Scale, adolescent students, South BangaloreAbstract
The rapid integration of digital technologies into education has significantly transformed adolescents' learning experiences while simultaneously increasing the risk of digital fatigue. This study investigates the impact of digital fatigue on the personal competency of adolescent students in South Bangalore, Karnataka. The study also examines the mediating roles of coping strategies and resilience in reducing the adverse effects of prolonged digital engagement. A comprehensive review of literature identified substantial research gaps concerning the relationship between digital fatigue and personal competency, particularly within the Indian educational context. Existing studies primarily focus on technostress and digital overuse from Western perspectives, with limited attention to region-specific adolescent populations. To address these gaps, the present research adopted a descriptive and diagnostic research design using a mixed-method approach. Primary data were collected from adolescent students who had been using digital devices for educational and personal purposes for a minimum period of six months. Standardized instruments, namely the Digital Fatigue Scale (DFS), Brief COPE Inventory, Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), and General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES), were employed to measure the study variables. The quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics, reliability and validity analysis, correlation, multiple regression, and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The conceptual framework proposed that digital fatigue influences personal competency directly and indirectly through coping strategies and resilience. The findings revealed that digital fatigue negatively affects adolescents' cognitive, emotional, physical, and social competencies. Coping strategies were found to significantly reduce the negative consequences of digital fatigue, while resilience further strengthened adolescents' ability to maintain personal competency under digital stress. The structural model demonstrated satisfactory goodness-of-fit and supported all the proposed relationships among the study variables. The research concludes that effective coping mechanisms and higher resilience serve as significant protective factors against the detrimental effects of digital fatigue. The study contributes to the existing body of knowledge by providing empirical evidence from the South Bangalore context and extending the understanding of digital fatigue beyond aggregate measures to individual psychological outcomes. The findings offer valuable implications for educators, parents, mental health professionals, and policymakers in designing digital wellness programmes and promoting healthy technology use among adolescents. Overall, the study emphasizes the need for balanced digital engagement and resilience-building interventions to enhance adolescents' personal competency and well-being in an increasingly digital educational environment.
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