Date of Award

1-1-2023

Language

English

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

College/School/Department

Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology

Content Description

1 online resource (viii, 69 pages) : illustrations.

Dissertation/Thesis Chair

Hung-Bin Sheu

Committee Members

Lisa M McAndrew, Zheng Yan

Keywords

depression, social media, social satisfaction, social support, upward social comparison, Social media, Internet, College students

Subject Categories

Counseling Psychology

Abstract

Over the past decade, levels of depression and levels of social media use have risen considerably among college students in the United States. As such, a growing body of research has examined the relation between social media use and negative mental health outcomes among this population. However, research on the link between social media and depressive symptoms produces mixed and at times contradictory results. One evidenced mechanism is upward social comparison, by which a person perceives a peer to be better off than they are on social media, and subsequently makes negative evaluations about themselves. This study seeks to confirm the role of upward social comparison as a mechanism in development of depressive symptoms. This study also introduced social satisfaction as an important positive wellbeing outcome, and sought to understand how social media use and upward social comparison can lead to decreased satisfaction with one’s social life. It also examined the role of social support as a protective factor on the outcomes of depression and social satisfaction.A large convenience sample (N = 709) of college students participated in this study. All were fully-enrolled students between the ages of 18-26 who reported being a daily user of at least one social media platform. Structural equational modeling techniques were used to examine the direct and indirect contributions of social media use and upward social comparison to depressive symptoms and social satisfaction. The interaction between social support and upward social comparison on depressive symptoms and social satisfaction was also tested. The model demonstrated adequate fit and most of the hypothesized pathways were significant. Partial mediation was indicated for the relation between social media use and depressive symptoms. Results of the latent moderation were more mixed; a significant interaction effect was indicated between upward social comparison and social support on social satisfaction. Altogether, these results suggest that upward social comparison is a powerful mechanism through which distress develops among college students. It also suggests a small interaction between social support and upward social comparison on social satisfaction. In light of these findings, clinical implications and directions for future research are discussed.

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