The relationship between perceived stress and problematic social networking site use among Chinese college students

Abstract

Background and aims Perceived stress has been regarded as a risk factor for problematic social networking site (SNS) use, yet little is known about the underlying processes whereby confounding variables may mediate or moderate this relationship. To answer this question, this study examined whether depression and anxiety mediated the relationship between perceived stress and problematic SNS use, and whether these mediating processes were moderated by psychological resilience and social support. Methods Participants were 641 Chinese college students who completed anonymous questionnaires measuring perceived stress, depression/anxiety, psychological resilience, social support, and problematic SNS use. Results The results showed that (a) depression/anxiety mediated the relationship between perceived stress and problematic SNS use; (b) the mediating effects of depression/anxiety on the association between perceived stress and problematic SNS use were moderated by psychological resilience. Specifically, the mediating effects of depression/anxiety were stronger for individuals with lower levels of psychological resilience, compared with those with higher levels of psychological resilience; and (c) the mediating effects of depression/anxiety were not moderated by social support, although social support was negatively related to depression/anxiety. Discussion and conclusion This study can contribute to a better understanding of how and when perceived stress increases the risk of problematic SNS use, and implies the importance of enhancing psychological resilience in preventing problematic SNS use.

Social Networks Use Disorder and Associations With Depression and Anxiety Symptoms: A Systematic Review of Recent Research in China

“…Various measures were used to assess SNUD with the authors of studies adapting measures into Chinese/Mandarin and to assess Chinese SNSs (i.e., western SNS name, such as Facebook R , was exchanged for a Chinese SNS name such as WeChat R ). Hou et al (2019) and Wang et al (2018) utilized adapted versions of the Facebook Intrusion Questionnaire (Elphinston and Noller, 2011;Li et al, 2018a,b) used the Online Social Networking Addiction Scale (Li et al, 2016), Liu and Ma (2018a) used the Social Media Addiction Scale (Liu and Ma, 2018b), Chen et al (2019) used the Social Networking Websites Addiction Scale (SNWAS; Turel and Serenko, 2012) and the Social Networking Sites Addiction Tendency Scale (SNSATS; Wilson et al, 2010). (Yam et al, 2019) used the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (Andreassen et al, 2012), Li et al (2017) used an adapted version of the Facebook Addiction Scale (Koc and Gulyagci, 2013), and Hong et al (2014) used the Internet Addiction Test (Young, 1996).…”

“…Four studies examined the associations between SNUD and anxiety (i.e., Liu and Ma, 2018a;Chen et al, 2019;Hou et al, 2019;Yam et al, 2019). A significant, positive association between SNUD and anxiety was reported in four studies (i.e., Liu and Ma, 2018a;Chen et al, 2019;Hou et al, 2019;Yam et al, 2019).…”

“…Bivariate correlations were typically in the range of 0.19-0.56. Three of the studies reported inferential statistical results (i.e., Chen et al, 2019-high anxiety was associated with high levels of SNUD (β simple slope =.32, p < 0.001); (Liu and Ma, 2018a)-SNUD was a significant predictor of anxiety, anxiety was a mediator between SNUD and burnout (mediation effect = 0.0795 (95% CI, [0.0546, 0.1075]); (Hou et al, 2019)-anxiety was positively associated with SNUD (β = 0.14, 0.12, p < 0.05). Several scales were used to measure anxiety in the studies.…”

“…Eight studies examined the associations between SNUD and depression (i.e., Hong et al, 2014;Li et al, 2017Li et al, , 2018aNiu et al, 2018;Tian et al, 2018;Wang et al, 2018;Hou et al, 2019;Yam et al, 2019). A significant and positive association between SNUD and depression was reported in seven studies (i.e., Hong et al, 2014;Li et al, 2017Li et al, , 2018aNiu et al, 2018;Wang et al, 2018;Hou et al, 2019;Yam et al, 2019). Tian et al (2018) reported a significant negative association between SNUD and depression.…”

“…Chen et al (2019) used the Chinese version of the Social Phobia Scale (Ye et al, 2007). Hou et al (2019) used the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (Spielberger et al, 1970). Liu and Ma (2018a) used the Social Anxiety Scale for Social Media Users (SAS-SMU; Alkis et al, 2017).…”