Through the Looking Glass of Social Media. Focus on Self-Presentation and Association with Mental Health and Quality of Life. A Cross-Sectional Survey-Based Study.

Abstract

Background Social media use among adolescents has been linked to mental health and well-being. However, most of the studies investigating this association focus primarily on frequency and duration of use, providing little knowledge of how various types of social media activities may be differentially linked to mental health and well-being. A recent narrative review highlighted that self-presentation may be an important factor to investigate in order to better understand the link between use of social media and well-being among adolescents. The aims of the present study were to investigate the association between focus on self-presentation on social media and mental health and quality of life among adolescents. Specifically, we aimed to investigate the overall and gender-stratified associations between self-presentation and symptoms of depression and anxiety, as well as a general measure of quality of life. Methods This study employs a cross-sectional survey-based design. A total of 513 (56%) students enrolled at a senior high school in Norway participated. The mean age of the participants were 17.1 years (1.1 standard deviations), and 58% were boys. Associations between focus on self-presentation on social media and symptoms of anxiety and depression and quality of life were investigated using blobbograms, standardized mean difference and gender-specific linear regression models. Results Overall, a high focus on self-presentation on social media was associated with more mental health problems and reduced quality of life. The strength of the associations with symptoms of depression (0.64 standardised mean difference (SMD)) and anxiety (0.60 SMD) was medium to large, while it was medium for quality of life (-0.45 SMD). In gender-stratified analyses, the association was similar for boys and girls in relation to symptoms of anxiety. For symptoms of depression, the association was stronger for girls compared to boys. Focus on self-presentation on social media was only significantly associated with quality of life among girls. Conclusions In sum, our findings are preliminary evidence of a medium strong relationship between focus on self-presentation on social media and symptoms of anxiety and depression for both genders, albeit with potential important gender differences. Potential implications and public health relevance of the findings are discussed.

Focus on self-presentation on social media across sociodemographic variables, lifestyle, and personality: A cross-sectional study

“…The self-presentation items were developed based on focus group interviews with adolescents attending senior high school [36]. See Skogen et al [33] for a more thorough description of the item development process.…”

“…Upward social comparison has been associated with more depressive symptoms [24] and body dissatisfaction among adolescents [31], and with suicidal ideation among young adults [12,32]. One recent study found that increased levels of feedback-seeking and social comparison was associated with more depressive symptoms, anxiety, and reduced well-being among adolescents [33].…”

“…Importantly, it is likely that individuals differ in the importance they place on social media feedback and how much they engage in upward social comparison. For example, adolescent girls have been found to report higher levels of feedback-seeking and social comparison than boys [24,33]. They have also been shown to post more self-focused images ("sel es") than adolescent boys, and to be more focused on their physical appearance and more concerned about peer-feedback [34].…”

Factor structure and interpretation on the Thai-Social Media Engagement Scale (T-SMES)

“…According to the data above, those who spend a lot of time on social media are more likely to participate in excessive use, which can lead to behavioral and mental health problems. In the literature, excessive use of social media has been associated with decreased sleep quality, daily cognitive failures, eating problems as a result of a preoccupation with physical appearance and muscularity, and negative emotions including depression and anxiety (Xanidis and Brignell, 2016;Nguyen et al, 2020;Vidal et al, 2020;Imperatori et al, 2021;Skogen et al, 2021). The empirical evidence also suggested clinical symptom arisen from an excessive use of social media, predominantly rely on the clinical criteria of Substance-Related Addictions and Internet Gaming Disorder in DSM-5 (American Psychiatric Association, 2013;Tutgun-Ünal and Deniz, 2015;Regina et al, 2016;Shahnawaz and Rehman, 2020).…”

Self‐objectification in women predicts approval motivation in online self‐presentation

“…Recent work has drawn attention to the emerging importance of approval motivation and self‐presentation in online social contexts, given the popularity of sites such as Instagram and TikTok (Audrezet, de Kerviler, & Guidry Moulard, 2018; Bhandari & Bimo, 2020; Chae, 2017; Skogen, Hjetland, Bøe, Hella, & Knudsen, 2021). Indeed, the emergence of online social media has changed how people establish relationships (Choi, Kim, Sung, & Sohn, 2011; van Dijck & Poell, 2013; Serafinelli, 2017).…”