Anja Stevic
Biographic Data
| ID | 4267062 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Anja Stevic |
| GIVEN NAMES | Anja |
| FAMILY NAME | Stevic |
| SIGNATURE | STEVIC A |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Vienna |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-9703-2225 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 26 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 28 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 26 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2019 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
“There Are Risks, but I Will Use It Anyway”: Predicting the Urge to Regulate and the Intended Use of Generative AI Among Youth in Four Countries
Generative AI is rapidly evolving, yet our understanding of how the public assesses and evaluates this technology remains limited. This is particularly true for youths who traditionally are early adopters of new technologies. Our study investigates how sociodemographic variables as well as risk perceptions influence youths′ future urge to regulate as well as their future intention to use generative AI in Indonesia, Austria, Serbia, and Hong Kong …
Cognitive and affective predictors of sharing intentions on social media: The role of anxiety, social benefits, and risks
Generative AI in Practice: An Umbrella Review of Risks, Benefits, Ethics, and Future Directions Across Major Domains
Generative artificial intelligence has rapidly evolved, influencing diverse fields such as healthcare, education, and technology. While the benefits of GAI, such as automation, decision-making support, and personalization, are widely recognized, concerns regarding bias, misinformation, ethical implications, and regulatory gaps persist. We conducted an umbrella review to synthesize existing literature on GAI, focusing on key research topics, metho…
Tell me more: Longitudinal relationships between online self-disclosure, co-rumination, and psychological well-being
Observing phubbing behaviors during casual and serious conversations: Consequences for conversation quality, connectedness, and appropriateness
The present study investigated observers' perspectives of smartphone use during social interactions in serious and casual conversational contexts, suggesting gender differences. The results of the between-subjects 2 × 2 experimental study show that female observers perceive lower conversation quality when observing phubbing than male observers, aligning with the need-threat model's assertion of female susceptibility to social exclusion. Moreover,…
Time to BeReal! Exploring users’ well-being in relation to BeReal use duration
The mobile app BeReal, launched in 2020, has gained popularity for its emphasis on authenticity, spontaneity, and real-time daily interactions with close ties, earning it the label of “anti-Instagram.” However, empirical evidence on its relationship with well-being is currently lacking. This study uses a quasi-experimental two-wave design to examine the relationship between BeReal use duration and well-being indicators. Results suggest that long-…
Of Loving and Losing: The Influence of Dating App Motivations and Perceived Success on Psychological Well-Being
We advance communication theory on the relationship between online dating and psychological well-being with a nationally representative, two-wave panel survey of dating app users ( N = 521) that investigates individuals' motives for dating and their perceived success. Results from an autoregressive structural equation model revealed people felt lonelier when they used dating apps for social approval, but not when they used them to pursue relation…
“It’s too much”: Excessive smartphone use during the Covid-19 crisis, information overload, and infection self-efficacy
During the COVID-19-related lockdowns around the world, individuals received a permanent digital stream of information about the pandemic via their smartphones. We theorize that such excessive COVID-19-related smartphone use can affect information overload, i.e., the perception to be exposed to too much information about COVID-19. We also introduce the notion of infection self-efficacy, the feeling that one is able to control the likelihood of be…
Sharing is caring: The positive role of smartphone co-use in social dynamics
Smartphones are increasingly present during the exchanges we have with others in real life. Such co-present smartphone use has mainly been examined from a negative perspective, and research has insufficiently recognized the positive role these behaviors may play in social relationships. The main goal of the current study was therefore to offer insight into the processes by which smartphone co-use may be related to positive social dynamics during …
Reflective smartphone disengagement as a coping strategy against cyberbullying: A cross-country study with emerging adults from the United States and Indonesia
Cyberbullying is a highly prevalent phenomenon among emerging adults, and it may lead to severe psychosocial harm for some targets. Understanding how emerging adults can cope with cyberbullying by altering their media use but without risking one of their crucial social lifelines, mobile social media, during the process is essential. To this end, this study examines a stress-coping process that involves cyberbullying as a stressor and reflective s…
Dating algorithms? Investigating the reciprocal relationships between partner choice Fomo, decision fatigue, excessive swiping, and trust in algorithms on dating apps
Dating apps have changed the way people establish contact with potential romantic partners. However, more and more dating apps use algorithms to keep their users’ engagement high. Studies suggest that trust in algorithms can shape offline dating experiences. We theorize that excessive swiping, driven by fear of missing out, predicts trust. We also explore the role of decision fatigue. Findings from a two-wave panel study with N Time2 = 521 young …
Under Pressure? Longitudinal Relationships between Different Types of Social Media Use, Digital Pressure, and Life Satisfaction
Social media became the predominant medium for communicating, sharing updates, and monitoring other users. However, due to increasing use of social media, individuals might feel availability pressure to be online and production pressure to post content, which might result in negative consequences. The present study aims to disentangle the relationships between active social media use (private interactions), active public social media use (broadca…
Fear of Missing Out, Reflective Smartphone Disengagement, and Loneliness in Late Adolescents
Reflective smartphone disengagement (i.e., deliberate actions to self-regulate when and how one should use one's smartphone) has become a necessary skill in our ever-connected lives, contributing to a healthy balance of related benefits and harms. However, disengaging from one's smartphone might compete with impulsive psychosocial motivators such as fear of missing out (FoMO) on others' rewarding experiences or feelings of loneliness. To shed lig…
Co-present smartphone use, friendship satisfaction, and social isolation: The role of coping strategies
Constant reliance on smartphones has resulted in frequent interruptions of face-to-face interactions. In the present study, we focused on three instances of co-present smartphone use: phubbing, i.e., using smartphones during in person social interactions with friends; being phubbed, i.e., being ignored by conversation partners due to smartphone use; and co-use, i.e., sharing and using the smartphone together with friends. Taking into account the …
Matches but a Spark Ain’t One: Adverse psychological effects of excessive swiping on dating apps
Studies showed adverse experiences related to the use of dating applications such as Tinder. However, it remains unclear by which mechanism and under which conditions dating app use has undesired effects. As a mechanism, we investigated excessive swiping, operationalized as youth’s mental preoccupation with profile browsing and swiping compulsivity. As moderators, we investigated swiping in assessment (i.e., critically evaluating profiles), and l…
A tale of two concepts: Differential temporal predictions of habitual and compulsive social media use concerning connection overload and sleep quality
Given how strongly social media is permeating young people’s everyday lives, many of them have formed strong habits that, under specific circumstances, can spiral out of control and bring harmful experiences. Unlike in extant literature where habitual and compulsive behaviors are often conflated, we report findings from a two-wave panel study examining the individual predictive value of both habitual and compulsive social media use on connection …
Distracted Children? Nighttime Smartphone Use, Children’s Attentional Problems, and School Performance Over Time
During early adolescence children are increasingly using their smartphones not only throughout the day, but also before or even during the nighttime. Prior research has revealed that children’s school performance might suffer because of late-night smartphone use. To gain a further understanding of the consequences of nighttime smartphone use on school performance, this study set out to examine whether children’s nighttime smartphone use is associ…
Reflective smartphone disengagement: Conceptualization, measurement, and validation
The present paper develops a new concept, called Reflective Smartphone Disengagement (RSD), defined as individuals’ deliberate efforts to control and restrict smartphone use. Based on the reflective-impulsive model, we examined the RSD concept in four studies, using cross-sectional data of adolescents (Study 1, N = 453, Study 3, N = 760) and adults (Study 4, N = 672), as well as panel data of adults (Study 2, N = 461). In Study 1, findings from e…
The Covid-19 infodemic at your fingertips. Reciprocal relationships between Covid-19 information Fomo, bedtime smartphone news engagement, and daytime tiredness over time
Considering that insufficient sleep has long been regarded as a significant public health challenge, the COVID-19 pandemic and its co-evolving infodemic have further aggravated many people's sleep health. People's engagement with pandemic-related news, particularly given that many people are now permanently online via smartphones, has been identified as a critical factor for sleep health, such that public health authorities have recommended limit…
Politics – Simply Explained? How Influencers Affect Youth’s Perceived Simplification of Politics, Political Cynicism, and Political Interest
Social media influencers promote not only products and brands but also their opinions on serious topics like party politics or climate change. These so-called digital opinion leaders may exert a powerful impact on their followers’ political attitudes. Accordingly, we explore new directions to explain how influencers’ communication is related to political outcomes by proposing the concept of perceived simplification of politics (PSP). We argue tha…
Fighting over smartphones? Parents' excessive smartphone use, lack of control over children's use, and conflict
Parental regulation of children's smartphone use is typically associated with conflict. To explain conflict, this paper focused on parents' own smartphone use. A panel survey among parent-child pairs (NTme2 = 384) revealed that parents' excessive smartphone use at Time 1 was associated with a lack of control over children's smartphone use at Time 2. Lack of control over children's smartphone use, in turn, was related to conflict about the smartph…
A vicious circle between children’s non-communicative smartphone use and loneliness: Parents cannot do much about it
Children are increasingly using their own smartphones for communicative and non-communicative purposes. In fact, studies showed that different ways of using the smartphone might influence loneliness, and as a consequence, loneliness might also enhance further engagement with the smartphone. In this context, parents play an important role because they can regulate children’s smartphone use. The present study tested the moderating role of active an…
You are not alone: Smartphone use, friendship satisfaction, and anxiety during the Covid-19 crisis
Due to 'stay-at-home' measures, individuals increasingly relied on smartphones for social connection and for obtaining information about the COVID-19 pandemic. In a two-wave panel survey ( N Time2 = 416), we investigated associations between different types of smartphone use (i.e., communicative and non-communicative), friendship satisfaction, and anxiety during the first lockdown in Austria. Our findings revealed that communicative smartphone us…
Out of control? How parents’ perceived lack of control over children’s smartphone use affects children’s self-esteem over time
As a consequence of children’s nearly ubiquitous smartphone use, many parents experience resignation or frustration due to a perceived loss of control over their child’s excessive smartphone activities. This perceived lack of control may not only increase children’s risk of exposure to online harassment but also affect the relationship between parents and children—both crucial influence factors for children’s self-esteem. We tested these relation…
“Too much to handle”: Impact of mobile social networking sites on information overload, depressive symptoms, and well-being
Politics – Simply Explained? How Influencers Affect Youth’s Perceived Simplification of Politics, Political Cynicism, and Political Interest
Social media influencers promote not only products and brands but also their opinions on serious topics like party politics or climate change. These so-called digital opinion leaders may exert a powerful impact on their followers’ political attitudes. Accordingly, we explore new directions to explain how influencers’ communication is related to political outcomes by proposing the concept of perceived simplification of politics (PSP). We argue tha…
You are not alone: Smartphone use, friendship satisfaction, and anxiety during the Covid-19 crisis
Due to 'stay-at-home' measures, individuals increasingly relied on smartphones for social connection and for obtaining information about the COVID-19 pandemic. In a two-wave panel survey ( N Time2 = 416), we investigated associations between different types of smartphone use (i.e., communicative and non-communicative), friendship satisfaction, and anxiety during the first lockdown in Austria. Our findings revealed that communicative smartphone us…
A tale of two concepts: Differential temporal predictions of habitual and compulsive social media use concerning connection overload and sleep quality
Given how strongly social media is permeating young people’s everyday lives, many of them have formed strong habits that, under specific circumstances, can spiral out of control and bring harmful experiences. Unlike in extant literature where habitual and compulsive behaviors are often conflated, we report findings from a two-wave panel study examining the individual predictive value of both habitual and compulsive social media use on connection …
Dating algorithms? Investigating the reciprocal relationships between partner choice Fomo, decision fatigue, excessive swiping, and trust in algorithms on dating apps
Dating apps have changed the way people establish contact with potential romantic partners. However, more and more dating apps use algorithms to keep their users’ engagement high. Studies suggest that trust in algorithms can shape offline dating experiences. We theorize that excessive swiping, driven by fear of missing out, predicts trust. We also explore the role of decision fatigue. Findings from a two-wave panel study with N Time2 = 521 young …
Out of control? How parents’ perceived lack of control over children’s smartphone use affects children’s self-esteem over time
As a consequence of children’s nearly ubiquitous smartphone use, many parents experience resignation or frustration due to a perceived loss of control over their child’s excessive smartphone activities. This perceived lack of control may not only increase children’s risk of exposure to online harassment but also affect the relationship between parents and children—both crucial influence factors for children’s self-esteem. We tested these relation…
“Looking Up and Feeling Down”. The influence of mobile social networking site use on upward social comparison, self-esteem, and well-being of adult smartphone users
“Too much to handle”: Impact of mobile social networking sites on information overload, depressive symptoms, and well-being
Fighting over smartphones? Parents' excessive smartphone use, lack of control over children's use, and conflict
Parental regulation of children's smartphone use is typically associated with conflict. To explain conflict, this paper focused on parents' own smartphone use. A panel survey among parent-child pairs (NTme2 = 384) revealed that parents' excessive smartphone use at Time 1 was associated with a lack of control over children's smartphone use at Time 2. Lack of control over children's smartphone use, in turn, was related to conflict about the smartph…
A vicious circle between children’s non-communicative smartphone use and loneliness: Parents cannot do much about it
Children are increasingly using their own smartphones for communicative and non-communicative purposes. In fact, studies showed that different ways of using the smartphone might influence loneliness, and as a consequence, loneliness might also enhance further engagement with the smartphone. In this context, parents play an important role because they can regulate children’s smartphone use. The present study tested the moderating role of active an…
You are not alone: Smartphone use, friendship satisfaction, and anxiety during the Covid-19 crisis
Due to 'stay-at-home' measures, individuals increasingly relied on smartphones for social connection and for obtaining information about the COVID-19 pandemic. In a two-wave panel survey ( N Time2 = 416), we investigated associations between different types of smartphone use (i.e., communicative and non-communicative), friendship satisfaction, and anxiety during the first lockdown in Austria. Our findings revealed that communicative smartphone us…
Out of control? How parents’ perceived lack of control over children’s smartphone use affects children’s self-esteem over time
As a consequence of children’s nearly ubiquitous smartphone use, many parents experience resignation or frustration due to a perceived loss of control over their child’s excessive smartphone activities. This perceived lack of control may not only increase children’s risk of exposure to online harassment but also affect the relationship between parents and children—both crucial influence factors for children’s self-esteem. We tested these relation…
Reflective smartphone disengagement: Conceptualization, measurement, and validation
The present paper develops a new concept, called Reflective Smartphone Disengagement (RSD), defined as individuals’ deliberate efforts to control and restrict smartphone use. Based on the reflective-impulsive model, we examined the RSD concept in four studies, using cross-sectional data of adolescents (Study 1, N = 453, Study 3, N = 760) and adults (Study 4, N = 672), as well as panel data of adults (Study 2, N = 461). In Study 1, findings from e…
The Covid-19 infodemic at your fingertips. Reciprocal relationships between Covid-19 information Fomo, bedtime smartphone news engagement, and daytime tiredness over time
Considering that insufficient sleep has long been regarded as a significant public health challenge, the COVID-19 pandemic and its co-evolving infodemic have further aggravated many people's sleep health. People's engagement with pandemic-related news, particularly given that many people are now permanently online via smartphones, has been identified as a critical factor for sleep health, such that public health authorities have recommended limit…
Politics – Simply Explained? How Influencers Affect Youth’s Perceived Simplification of Politics, Political Cynicism, and Political Interest
Social media influencers promote not only products and brands but also their opinions on serious topics like party politics or climate change. These so-called digital opinion leaders may exert a powerful impact on their followers’ political attitudes. Accordingly, we explore new directions to explain how influencers’ communication is related to political outcomes by proposing the concept of perceived simplification of politics (PSP). We argue tha…
Fear of Missing Out, Reflective Smartphone Disengagement, and Loneliness in Late Adolescents
Reflective smartphone disengagement (i.e., deliberate actions to self-regulate when and how one should use one's smartphone) has become a necessary skill in our ever-connected lives, contributing to a healthy balance of related benefits and harms. However, disengaging from one's smartphone might compete with impulsive psychosocial motivators such as fear of missing out (FoMO) on others' rewarding experiences or feelings of loneliness. To shed lig…
Co-present smartphone use, friendship satisfaction, and social isolation: The role of coping strategies
Constant reliance on smartphones has resulted in frequent interruptions of face-to-face interactions. In the present study, we focused on three instances of co-present smartphone use: phubbing, i.e., using smartphones during in person social interactions with friends; being phubbed, i.e., being ignored by conversation partners due to smartphone use; and co-use, i.e., sharing and using the smartphone together with friends. Taking into account the …
Matches but a Spark Ain’t One: Adverse psychological effects of excessive swiping on dating apps
Studies showed adverse experiences related to the use of dating applications such as Tinder. However, it remains unclear by which mechanism and under which conditions dating app use has undesired effects. As a mechanism, we investigated excessive swiping, operationalized as youth’s mental preoccupation with profile browsing and swiping compulsivity. As moderators, we investigated swiping in assessment (i.e., critically evaluating profiles), and l…
A tale of two concepts: Differential temporal predictions of habitual and compulsive social media use concerning connection overload and sleep quality
Given how strongly social media is permeating young people’s everyday lives, many of them have formed strong habits that, under specific circumstances, can spiral out of control and bring harmful experiences. Unlike in extant literature where habitual and compulsive behaviors are often conflated, we report findings from a two-wave panel study examining the individual predictive value of both habitual and compulsive social media use on connection …
Distracted Children? Nighttime Smartphone Use, Children’s Attentional Problems, and School Performance Over Time
During early adolescence children are increasingly using their smartphones not only throughout the day, but also before or even during the nighttime. Prior research has revealed that children’s school performance might suffer because of late-night smartphone use. To gain a further understanding of the consequences of nighttime smartphone use on school performance, this study set out to examine whether children’s nighttime smartphone use is associ…
“It’s too much”: Excessive smartphone use during the Covid-19 crisis, information overload, and infection self-efficacy
During the COVID-19-related lockdowns around the world, individuals received a permanent digital stream of information about the pandemic via their smartphones. We theorize that such excessive COVID-19-related smartphone use can affect information overload, i.e., the perception to be exposed to too much information about COVID-19. We also introduce the notion of infection self-efficacy, the feeling that one is able to control the likelihood of be…
Sharing is caring: The positive role of smartphone co-use in social dynamics
Smartphones are increasingly present during the exchanges we have with others in real life. Such co-present smartphone use has mainly been examined from a negative perspective, and research has insufficiently recognized the positive role these behaviors may play in social relationships. The main goal of the current study was therefore to offer insight into the processes by which smartphone co-use may be related to positive social dynamics during …
Reflective smartphone disengagement as a coping strategy against cyberbullying: A cross-country study with emerging adults from the United States and Indonesia
Cyberbullying is a highly prevalent phenomenon among emerging adults, and it may lead to severe psychosocial harm for some targets. Understanding how emerging adults can cope with cyberbullying by altering their media use but without risking one of their crucial social lifelines, mobile social media, during the process is essential. To this end, this study examines a stress-coping process that involves cyberbullying as a stressor and reflective s…
Dating algorithms? Investigating the reciprocal relationships between partner choice Fomo, decision fatigue, excessive swiping, and trust in algorithms on dating apps
Dating apps have changed the way people establish contact with potential romantic partners. However, more and more dating apps use algorithms to keep their users’ engagement high. Studies suggest that trust in algorithms can shape offline dating experiences. We theorize that excessive swiping, driven by fear of missing out, predicts trust. We also explore the role of decision fatigue. Findings from a two-wave panel study with N Time2 = 521 young …
Under Pressure? Longitudinal Relationships between Different Types of Social Media Use, Digital Pressure, and Life Satisfaction
Social media became the predominant medium for communicating, sharing updates, and monitoring other users. However, due to increasing use of social media, individuals might feel availability pressure to be online and production pressure to post content, which might result in negative consequences. The present study aims to disentangle the relationships between active social media use (private interactions), active public social media use (broadca…
Tell me more: Longitudinal relationships between online self-disclosure, co-rumination, and psychological well-being
Observing phubbing behaviors during casual and serious conversations: Consequences for conversation quality, connectedness, and appropriateness
The present study investigated observers' perspectives of smartphone use during social interactions in serious and casual conversational contexts, suggesting gender differences. The results of the between-subjects 2 × 2 experimental study show that female observers perceive lower conversation quality when observing phubbing than male observers, aligning with the need-threat model's assertion of female susceptibility to social exclusion. Moreover,…
Time to BeReal! Exploring users’ well-being in relation to BeReal use duration
The mobile app BeReal, launched in 2020, has gained popularity for its emphasis on authenticity, spontaneity, and real-time daily interactions with close ties, earning it the label of “anti-Instagram.” However, empirical evidence on its relationship with well-being is currently lacking. This study uses a quasi-experimental two-wave design to examine the relationship between BeReal use duration and well-being indicators. Results suggest that long-…
Of Loving and Losing: The Influence of Dating App Motivations and Perceived Success on Psychological Well-Being
We advance communication theory on the relationship between online dating and psychological well-being with a nationally representative, two-wave panel survey of dating app users ( N = 521) that investigates individuals' motives for dating and their perceived success. Results from an autoregressive structural equation model revealed people felt lonelier when they used dating apps for social approval, but not when they used them to pursue relation…
“There Are Risks, but I Will Use It Anyway”: Predicting the Urge to Regulate and the Intended Use of Generative AI Among Youth in Four Countries
Generative AI is rapidly evolving, yet our understanding of how the public assesses and evaluates this technology remains limited. This is particularly true for youths who traditionally are early adopters of new technologies. Our study investigates how sociodemographic variables as well as risk perceptions influence youths′ future urge to regulate as well as their future intention to use generative AI in Indonesia, Austria, Serbia, and Hong Kong …
Cognitive and affective predictors of sharing intentions on social media: The role of anxiety, social benefits, and risks
Psychology (23 works) · Impact of Technology on Adolescents (20 works) · Social Psychology (17 works) · Computer Science (13 works) · Developmental psychology (9 works) · Child Development and Digital Technology (7 works) · Media Influence and Health (7 works) · Medicine (7 works) · Social Psychology (7 works) · Social Media and Politics (6 works)