EXAMINING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MEDIA EXPOSURE AND GENERALIZED ANXIETY AMONG PAKISTANI YOUTH

Abstract

This study examined the generalized anxiety that can follow exposure to sensationalized, exaggerated news coverage among university students in Pakistan. Using a quantitative correlational survey, data were gathered from 258 young adults (about 55% women), most aged 21 to 26. News exposure was measured with the Content-based Media Exposure Scale, which separates sensational from positive or neutral content, and anxiety with the GAD-7; all three subscales showed good reliability. Social media was the main news source for almost half of the sample (48.8%), ahead of mobile news apps and YouTube. The mental-health burden was considerable: close to half of participants (45.7%) fell in the moderate anxiety range. Overall news exposure was positively related to anxiety, and sensational news in particular showed a strong association (r = .517, p < .001). When both content types were tested together, sensationalism remained a strong and independent predictor, an additive effect rather than a moderation. In short, it is the sensational framing of news, not how often it is consumed, that appears to drive anxiety among Pakistani youth.