Digital Disconnection as Leisure: Testing the DRAMMA Model's Recovery and Need-Fulfillment Pathways to Subjective Well-Being
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61360/BoniGHSS262020890506Keywords:
digital disconnection, subjective well-being, DRAMMA modelAbstract
Intentional digital disconnection is increasingly used to manage always-on media, but its associations with well-being and the psychological processes involved remain uncertain. This cross-sectional survey examines technology-based and non-technology-based disconnection among 703 Chinese university students using structural equation modeling. A study-specific adaptation of the DRAMMA framework distinguishes recovery-function from a need-related factor labelled need-fulfillment, comprising autonomy, meaning-related experiences, and affiliation. Both forms of disconnection were positively associated with subjective well-being, with standardized direct coefficients of 0.539 and 0.563. The need-related factor showed positive indirect associations in both models, with standardized coefficients of 0.157 and 0.214 and confidence intervals for the unstandardized effects excluding zero. The recovery-function indirect associations were not statistically significant. These findings identify different statistical associations under the proposed measurement specification. The cross-sectional design does not establish causal mediation, and the adapted indicators limit conclusions about individual DRAMMA dimensions. Longitudinal research and further measurement validation are needed.
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