Where does the time go? An experimental test of what social media displaces and displaced activities’ associations with affective well-being and quality of day
Issue Date
2018-10-23Author
Hall, Jeffrey A.
Johnson, Rebecca M.
Ross, Elaina M.
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Type
Article
Article Version
Scholarly/refereed, author accepted manuscript
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Drawing from media displacement theory, this article explores which activities are displaced when individuals spend time on social media. Community and undergraduate participants (N = 135) were randomly assigned to five conditions: no change in social media use, or abstinence from social media for 1 week, 2 weeks, 3 weeks, or 4 weeks. Participants completed a daily diary measuring how they spent time each day, affective well-being, and quality of day for 28 days. The results indicate that abstinence from social media increased time spent engaged in seven activities, primarily browsing the Internet, working, childcare, and cooking/cleaning. In addition, associations among psychosocial outcomes and the displaced activities were examined. Time spent working, sleeping, and cooking/cleaning were negatively associated with affective well-being and quality of day. On days participants used social media, minutes of use were negatively associated with quality of day. The results suggest that social media primarily displaces unpleasant or neutral activities.
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Citation
Hall, J. A., Johnson, R. M., & Ross, E. M. (in press). Where does the time go? An experimental test of what social media displaces and displaced activities’ associations with affective well-being and quality of day. New Media & Society. doi:10.1177/1461444818804775
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