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In recent years, the use of social media in adolescents has increased at an extremely rapid rate. So fast that it is difficult for research to fully understand its potential impacts on students’ well-being and academic outcomes due to its ever-changing nature. Research shows that the use of social media late into the night can have adverse effects on sleeping habits and cause shorter overall sleep times. This is shown to be due to individuals being woken up by notifications, fear of missing out and the addictive nature of some sites with constant new information that causes constant dopamine production. Additionally, the blue light emitted from electronic devices interrupts circadian rhythms, causing disturbed sleep patterns. This risk provided by night-time specific social media use was studied in relation to academic selfefficacy and academic procrastination. Academic self-efficacy is defined as a student’s selfbelief in their abilities to complete and succeed in their assignments and school tasks. Previous literature has shown that both social media and sleep disruption have negative impacts on academic self-efficacy. Similarly, prior research has also found relationships between academic procrastination, whereby an individual intentionally delays completing a task, and social media use and sleep disruptions. Additionally, high self-esteem has been shown to act as a protective factor for problematic social media use, academic self-efficacy, and academic procrastination. This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of selfesteem in the relationship between night-time specific social media use and academic selfefficacy and academic procrastination. The target population was UK university students, as this subgroup are some of the most active online. The sample for this study was 60 students from a multitude of UK universities from both undergraduate and postgraduate courses. After gaining consent from the participants, they completed a series of self-report questionnaires measuring night-time social media use, academic self-efficacy, academic procrastination, and self-esteem. Statistical analyses such as correlations and mediation were performed using SPSS statistical software to investigate the relationships between the variables. The results showed no significant association between night-time specific social media use, a significant positive correlation between night-time specific social media use and no significant results in either of the mediation analyses. Within the mediation analysis, a significant positive association was found between self-esteem and academic self-efficacy and a significant negative association between self-esteem and academic procrastination. There is no current research investigating the mediating effect of self-esteem in the relationship between night-time specific social media use and academic self-efficacy and academic procrastination. By exploring these interactions, this study highlights the importance of understanding how social media use can interact with academic outcomes. Future research can focus on other factors that night-time social media use may interact with, such as sociality, self-regulation, and self-esteem

As night-time specific social media use is seen to significantly increase academic procrastination in university students, this concern can be discussed within the institutions and potentially in secondary schools where parents can be involved in the discussion. This would also allow for early intervention in these behaviours in the individual’s academic career. Interventions could include parent and caregiver talks discussing the risks of latenight access to social media and promoting new techniques to do when a student cannot sleep, such as reading. For students who already believe they may be engaging in problematic social media use, cognitive behavioural therapy should be easily accessible. The importance of self-esteem should also be integrated into a school-based intervention. For example, 11080860 54 teachers and lecturers acknowledge good behaviours and accomplishments while also helping students to set realistic expectations relevant to themselves with the reminder that everyone is different. This could encourage a sense of ownership over the students’ own abilities and allow them to embrace success and failure and accept themselves. Social clubs and programmes with a wide range of activities will allow students to explore their strengths and weaknesses in a way that does not involve exam scores. Additionally, this would allow them to express themselves creatively or introduce new talents, leading to a boost in their feelings of self-worth. Parents and carers should also be advised to ensure they are making their children feel valued at home, as this can reflect on their self-esteem. Interventions can be developed to allow students to control their social media habits before they become problematic and promote high self-esteem.