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. 2017 May 11:8:771.
doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00771. eCollection 2017.

The Mediating Roles of Upward Social Comparison and Self-esteem and the Moderating Role of Social Comparison Orientation in the Association between Social Networking Site Usage and Subjective Well-Being

Jin-Liang Wang  1 , Hai-Zhen Wang  2 , James Gaskin  3 , Skyler Hawk  4
Affiliations

The Mediating Roles of Upward Social Comparison and Self-esteem and the Moderating Role of Social Comparison Orientation in the Association between Social Networking Site Usage and Subjective Well-Being

Jin-Liang Wang et al. Front Psychol. .

Abstract

The increased pervasiveness of social media use has raised questions about potential effects on users' subjective well-being, with studies reaching contrasting conclusions. To reconcile these discrepancies and shed new light on this phenomenon, the current study examined: (1) whether upward social comparison and self-esteem mediate the association between social networking site (SNS) usage and users' subjective well-being, and (2) whether the association between SNS usage and upward social comparison is moderated by users' social comparison orientation. Data from 696 participants were collected. Structural equation modeling revealed that upward social comparison and self-esteem mediated the relationship between SNS usage and users' subjective well-being. We found that social comparison orientation moderated the association between passive SNS usage and users' upward social comparison. Specifically, social comparison orientation strengthened the association between passive SNS usage and upward social comparison. The results might suggest a process through which passive SNS usage is related to subjective well-being, and identify a context under which these associations may differ.

Keywords: SNS usage; self-esteem; social comparison orientation; subjective well-being; upward social comparison.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Final structural model on the associations among passive social networking site (SNS) usage, social comparison orientation, upward social comparison, self-esteem, and subjective well-being. This is a final structural model with amendments based on modification index, and non-significant paths were removed for the sake of clarity. All coefficients are standardized. Age and gender were excluded from the model due to non-significant coefficients. We also ran the analysis excluding the covariates and no significant changes were obtained.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
The two-way interaction effect of passive SNS usage and upward social comparison.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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