The Relationship between Spiritual Health and Use of Virtual Social Networks in High-School Students of Firozabad, Fars Province

In different societies, paying attention to spiritual dimension of health has been emphasized as one of the health dimensions according to the WHO. The study aimed to determine the relation between spiritual health and use of virtual social networks among high school students in Firouzabad, Fars province in 2017.

In the cross-sectional study, 380 students (16-18 years) were selected using the multistage stratified sampling. Data collection instruments included demographic information questionnaire, virtual social network use questionnaire, and Poltzea and Ellisons questionnaire of spiritual health assessment.  
To analyze the data, analysis of variance, Pearson correlation coefficient, and logistic regression tests were used.

The mean score of spiritual health was 83.98 ± 17.01 and had a significant correlation with education level (p<0.001) and internet use time (p=0.02). A significant correlation was found between virtual social networks use and monthly income, (r=0.17) religions health (r= -0.64), individual health (r= -0.11), and total score of spiritual health (r= -0.09). Most of the students (65.77%) had internet access and the most frequently used virtual social network was WathsApp. Logisitc regression revealed that the mean score of desirable spiritual health among students who used virtual social networks for 11-20 , 21-30, and >30 hours per week were 0.83 , 0.72, and 0.27 times lower than the students who used these networks less than 10 hours a week.

Internet access was higher in male students than female and the spiritual health was at the average level in both genders. Regarding the effect of virtual social networks on students and its increasing expansion, the issue must be considered by authorities.