Over 500 million people interact daily with Facebook. Yet, whether Facebook use influences subjective well-being over time is unknown. We addressed this issue using experience-sampling, the most reliable method for measuring in-vivo behavior and psychological experience. We text-messaged people five times per day for two-weeks to examine how Facebook use influences the two components of subjective well-being: how people feel moment-to-moment and how satisfied they are with their lives. Our results indicate that Facebook use predicts negative shifts on both of these variables over time. The more people used Facebook at one time point, the worse they felt the next time we text-messaged them; the more they used Facebook over two-weeks, the more their life satisfaction levels declined over time. Interacting with other people “directly” did not predict these negative outcomes. They were also not moderated by the size of people's Facebook networks, their perceived supportiveness, motivation for using Facebook, gender, loneliness, self-esteem, or depression. On the surface, Facebook provides an invaluable resource for fulfilling the basic human need for social connection. Rather than enhancing well-being, however, these findings suggest that Facebook may undermine it.

/pdf/facebook-use-predicts-declines-in-subjective-well-being-in-1xdqd0qywy.pdf

Facebook use predicts declines in subjective well-being in young adults.

Social networking sites (SNSs), such as Facebook, provide abundant social comparison opportunities. Given the widespread use of SNSs, the purpose of the present set of studies was to examine the impact of chronic and temporary exposure to social media-based social comparison information on self-este

https://psycnet.apa.org/journals/ppm/3/4/206.pdf

Social comparison, social media, and self-esteem.

BACKGROUND: Social media (SM) use is increasing among U.S. young adults, and its association with mental well-being remains unclear. This study assessed the association between SM use and depression in a nationally representative sample of young adults. METHODS: We surveyed 1,787 adults ages 19 to 32 about SM use and depression. Participants were recruited via random digit dialing and address-based sampling. SM use was assessed by self-reported total time per day spent on SM, visits per week, and a global frequency score based on the Pew Internet Research Questionnaire. Depression was assessed using the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) Depression Scale Short Form. Chi-squared tests and ordered logistic regressions were performed with sample weights. RESULTS: The weighted sample was 50.3% female and 57.5% White. Compared to those in the lowest quartile of total time per day spent on SM, participants in the highest quartile had significantly increased odds of depression (AOR = 1.66, 95% CI = 1.14-2.42) after controlling for all covariates. Compared with those in the lowest quartile, individuals in the highest quartile of SM site visits per week and those with a higher global frequency score had significantly increased odds of depression (AOR = 2.74, 95% CI = 1.86-4.04; AOR = 3.05, 95% CI = 2.03-4.59, respectively). All associations between independent variables and depression had strong, linear, dose-response trends. RESULTS were robust to all sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSIONS: SM use was significantly associated with increased depression. Given the proliferation of SM, identifying the mechanisms and direction of this association is critical for informing interventions that address SM use and depression. Language: en

http://www.primack.net/professional/articles/r078da2016.pdf

Association between Social Media Use and Depression among U.S. Young Adults

Prior research indicates that Facebook usage predicts declines in subjective well-being over time. How does this come about? We examined this issue in 2 studies using experimental and field methods. In Study 1, cueing people in the laboratory to use Facebook passively (rather than actively) led to declines in affective well-being over time. Study 2 replicated these findings in the field using experience-sampling techniques. It also demonstrated how passive Facebook usage leads to declines in affective well-being: by increasing envy. Critically, the relationship between passive Facebook usage and changes in affective well-being remained significant when controlling for active Facebook use, non-Facebook online social network usage, and direct social interactions, highlighting the specificity of this result. These findings demonstrate that passive Facebook usage undermines affective well-being.

/pdf/passive-facebook-usage-undermines-affective-well-being-1navy2enh1.pdf

Passive Facebook usage undermines affective well-being: Experimental and longitudinal evidence

Social network sites are ubiquitous and now constitute a common tool people use to interact with one another in daily life. Here we review the consequences of interacting with social network sites for subjective well-being—that is, how people feel moment-to-moment and how satisfied they are with their lives. We begin by clarifying the constructs that we focus on in this review: social network sites and subjective well-being. Next, we review the literature that explains how these constructs are related. This research reveals: (a) negative relationships between passively using social network sites and subjective well-being, and (b) positive relationships between actively using social network sites and subjective well-being, with the former relationship being more robust than the latter. Specifically, passively using social network sites provokes social comparisons and envy, which have negative downstream consequences for subjective well-being. In contrast, when active usage of social network sites predicts subjective well-being, it seems to do so by creating social capital and stimulating feelings of social connectedness. We conclude by discussing the policy implications of this work.

/pdf/do-social-network-sites-enhance-or-undermine-subjective-well-1zspcyk163.pdf

Do Social Network Sites Enhance or Undermine Subjective Well‐Being? A Critical Review

Facebook, as one of the most popular social networking sites among college students, provides a platform for people to manage others' impressions of them. People tend to present themselves in a favorable way on their Facebook profile. This research examines the impact of using Facebook on people's perceptions of others' lives. It is argued that those with deeper involvement with Facebook will have different perceptions of others than those less involved due to two reasons. First, Facebook users tend to base judgment on examples easily recalled (the availability heuristic). Second, Facebook users tend to attribute the positive content presented on Facebook to others' personality, rather than situational factors (correspondence bias), especially for those they do not know personally. Questionnaires, including items measuring years of using Facebook, time spent on Facebook each week, number of people listed as their Facebook “friends,” and perceptions about others' lives, were completed by 425 under...

“They Are Happier and Having Better Lives than I Am”: The Impact of Using Facebook on Perceptions of Others' Lives

With the spread of Facebook among people in many countries, some companies have started using applicants' Facebook profiles as a criterion of personnel selection, in an effort to identify good workers among job applicants. However, how using Facebook is connected to individuals' relationships with coworkers and work attitudes is unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between using Facebook, relationships with coworkers, and some attitudes toward the current job. Undergraduate students at a state university in Utah were randomly chosen to participate in an online survey between April and May 2012. The results of a multivariate analysis, based on 516 currently employed respondents, revealed several findings. First, those more involved in using Facebook—often assumed as more people-oriented individuals—do not have better relationships with their coworkers than their counterparts. Second, those with more Facebook friends care less about their work performance than those wi...

How Facebook Might Reveal Users' Attitudes Toward Work and Relationships with Coworkers


 This study examines how serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) affects individuals’ attitudes toward immigrants. Several hypotheses were developed based on intergroup contact theory. An online survey was filled out by 1,290 undergraduate students taking classes at a state university in Utah. Multivariate analyses yielded several findings. First, those who have served an LDS mission hold a more positive attitude toward immigrants than other individuals. Second, missionaries serving in some mission fields hold a more positive attitude toward immigrants than their counterparts, including those who needed to learn and speak a new language during their mission, those who served the mission in Latin America, those who received help from people of other countries during their mission, and those serving in places with either a lower or similar living standard. Surprisingly, being a victim of violence from people of other countries during the mission did not exert a significant impact on respondents’ attitudes toward immigrants.

Hui-Tzu Grace Chou

Papers

“They Are Happier and Having Better Lives than I Am”: The Impact of Using Facebook on Perceptions of Others' Lives

How Facebook Might Reveal Users' Attitudes Toward Work and Relationships with Coworkers

Impacts of Serving a Mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints on Individuals’ Attitudes toward Immigrants