Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/53769
Title: Self-compassion moderates the predictive effects of social media use profiles on depression and anxiety
Contributor(s): Phillips, Wendy J  (author)orcid ; Wisniewski, Anna T  (author)
Publication Date: 2021-08-04
Early Online Version: 2021-07-29
Open Access: Yes
DOI: 10.1016/j.chbr.2021.100128
Handle Link: https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/53769
Abstract: 

This study identified patterns of social media use, examined their relationships with anxiety and depression, and investigated whether levels of self-compassion moderated these relationships. Three-hundred university students who used social media (Mage = 34.90, SD = 11.19, 77.3% female) completed an online survey. Variables that assessed time spent on social media, frequency of use, problematic social media use, fear of missing out, emotional responses to using social media, and perceptions of online interactions were subjected to a two-step cluster analysis. Four distinct social media use profiles emerged: Problem Users, Disenchanted Dabblers, Moderate Users, and Contented Dabblers. ANOVAs revealed that Problem Users reported higher mean levels of anxiety and depression than did the other three groups. However, subsequent moderation analyses found that self-compassion buffered these relationships, with highly self-compassionate Problem Users reporting similar levels of anxiety and depression to the other profile groups. These findings suggest that self-compassion may protect vulnerable social media users against anxiety and depression. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Publication Type: Journal Article
Source of Publication: Computers in Human Behavior Reports, v.4, p. 1-10
Publisher: Elsevier Ltd
Place of Publication: United Kingdom
ISSN: 2451-9588
Fields of Research (FoR) 2020: 520199 Applied and developmental psychology not elsewhere classified
520302 Clinical psychology
520503 Personality and individual differences
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2020: 220502 Internet, digital and social media
200409 Mental health
280121 Expanding knowledge in psychology
Peer Reviewed: Yes
HERDC Category Description: C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal
Appears in Collections:Journal Article
School of Psychology

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