Tuck Alison B, Thompson Renee J
Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Washington University in St Louis, St Louis, MO, United States.
JMIR Form Res. 2021 Sep 7;5(9):e26513. doi: 10.2196/26513.
Social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic has reduced the frequency of in-person social interactions. College students were highly impacted, since many universities transferred curriculum from in-person to entirely online formats, physically separating students with little notice. With social distancing, their use of social networking sites (SNSs) likely changed during the COVID-19 pandemic, possibly holding implications for well-being.
This study aimed to determine (1) how components of SNS use (ie, weekly frequency, time per day, habitual use, engagement, enjoyment, addiction, and emotional impact) changed from before to during COVID-19, (2) how these changes in SNS use were associated with pandemic-related social and emotional well-being, and (3) how SNS use and changes in use during the pandemic were associated with loneliness.
College students (N=176) were surveyed during the time when their university campus in the United States was operating online. Participants completed the same SNS use questionnaires twice, once with regard to the month preceding the onset of COVID-19 and again with regard to the month since this time. They also reported the extent to which they experienced perceived change in social support resulting from the pandemic, pandemic-related stress, and general loneliness.
After the onset of COVID-19, participants showed an increase in daily time spent on SNSs (t=5.53, d=0.42, P<.001), habitual use (t=3.60, d=0.27, P<.001), and addiction (t=4.96, d=0.38, P<.001); further, enjoyment on SNSs decreased (t=-2.10, d=-0.16, P=.04) and the emotional impact of SNS activities became more negative (t=-3.76, d=-0.29, P<.001). Increased perceived social support during COVID-19 was associated with changes in frequency of SNS use, time per day, addiction, and engagement (r>0.18 for all). Pandemic-related stress was associated with changes in SNS addiction and the extent to which one's SNS content was related to the pandemic (r>0.20 for all). Loneliness was positively associated with SNS addiction (r=0.26) and negatively associated with SNS engagement (r=-0.19) during the pandemic. Loneliness was also negatively associated with changes in habit and engagement (r<-0.15 for all).
Findings suggest that components of SNS use are associated with both positive and negative pandemic-related social outcomes, but largely negative pandemic-related emotional outcomes. Further, some components of SNS use are positively associated with loneliness (eg, addiction) while others show a negative association (eg, engagement). These findings provide a more nuanced picture of how SNS use is associated with social and emotional well-being during the time of a global health crisis when in-person interactions are scarce.
2019年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）大流行期间的社交距离措施减少了面对面社交互动的频率。大学生受到的影响很大，因为许多大学将课程从面对面教学完全转为在线教学，在几乎没有通知的情况下让学生们在物理上彼此分开。在社交距离措施实施期间，他们对社交网站（SNS）的使用在COVID-19大流行期间可能发生了变化，这可能对幸福感产生影响。
本研究旨在确定：（1）SNS使用的各个组成部分（即每周使用频率、每天使用时间、习惯性使用、参与度、愉悦感、成瘾性和情感影响）在COVID-19之前到期间是如何变化的；（2）SNS使用的这些变化与大流行相关的社会和情感幸福感有何关联；（3）大流行期间SNS的使用及使用变化与孤独感有何关联。
在美国大学校园进行在线教学期间，对大学生（N = 176）进行了调查。参与者两次填写相同的SNS使用问卷，一次是关于COVID-19开始前的一个月，另一次是关于自那时起的一个月。他们还报告了他们感受到的因大流行导致的社会支持变化程度、与大流行相关的压力以及一般孤独感。
COVID-19开始后，参与者每天花在SNS上的时间增加（t = 5.53，d = 0.42，P <.001）、习惯性使用增加（t = 3.60，d = 0.27，P <.001）以及成瘾性增加（t = 4.96，d = 0.38，P <.001）；此外，在SNS上的愉悦感下降（t = -2.10，d = -0.16，P =.04），SNS活动的情感影响变得更消极（t = -3.76，d = -0.29，P <.001）。COVID-19期间感受到的社会支持增加与SNS使用频率、每天使用时间、成瘾性和参与度的变化相关（所有r > 0.18）。与大流行相关的压力与SNS成瘾性变化以及个人SNS内容与大流行的相关程度相关（所有r > 0.20）。在大流行期间，孤独感与SNS成瘾性呈正相关（r = 0.26），与SNS参与度呈负相关（r = -0.19）。孤独感还与习惯和参与度的变化呈负相关（所有r < -0.15）。
研究结果表明，SNS使用的各个组成部分与大流行相关的积极和消极社会结果都有关联，但在很大程度上与大流行相关的消极情感结果有关。此外，SNS使用的一些组成部分与孤独感呈正相关（如成瘾性），而其他一些则呈负相关（如参与度）。这些发现更细致地描绘了在面对面互动稀缺的全球健康危机时期，SNS使用与社会和情感幸福感之间的关联。
