Andrade Fernanda C, Erwin Savannah, Burnell Kaitlyn, Jackson Jalisa, Storch Marley, Nicholas Julia, Zucker Nancy
Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, United States.
Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States.
JMIR Ment Health. 2023 Apr 28;10:e42024. doi: 10.2196/42024.
Literature has underscored the dark aspects of social media use, including associations with depressive symptoms, feelings of social isolation, and diminished self-esteem. Social comparison, the process of evaluating oneself relative to another person, is thought to contribute to these negative experiences such that people with a stronger tendency to compare themselves with others are particularly susceptible to the detrimental effects of social media. Social media as a form of social connection and communication is nevertheless an inevitable-and arguably integral-part of life, particularly for young adults. Therefore, there is a need to investigate strategies that could alter the manner in which people interact with social media to minimize its detrimental effects and maximize the feelings of affiliation and connection.
This pilot study examined the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of a brief web-based intervention designed to alter engagement with social media and promote psychological well-being by encouraging social savoring as an alternative to social comparison. Social savoring was operationalized as experiencing joyful emotions related to the happiness of someone else's experiences (ie, feeling happy for someone else).
Following an intensive longitudinal design, 55 college students (mean age 19.29, SD 0.93 years; n=43, 78% women and n=23, 42% White) completed baseline measures (individual differences, psychological well-being, connectedness, and social media use) and then 14 days of daily surveys on their social media activity and well-being. On day 8, the group that was randomized to receive the intervention watched a video instructing them on the skill of social savoring and was asked to practice this skill during days 8 to 14.
Overall, participants reported positive perceptions of the intervention. Participants who watched the intervention video reported significantly higher performance self-esteem (P=.02) at posttest than those in the control condition, after controlling for baseline levels. Participants also reported significantly higher state self-esteem (P=.01) on days in which they engaged in more social savoring while using social media, and the use of social savoring increased significantly (P=.01) over time, suggesting that participants found it helpful. Participants in both conditions reported significantly lower levels of social comparison (control: P=.01; intervention: P=.002) and higher levels of connectedness (control: P<.001; intervention: P=.001) at posttest than at baseline.
Initial evidence from this pilot study suggests that a web-based social savoring intervention may help minimize the potentially harmful consequences of social media use, at least in some domains. Future work is needed to examine the effectiveness and acceptance of this intervention in different age groups and in clinical samples that are in part characterized by higher levels of comparison with others (eg, people with eating disorders).
文献强调了社交媒体使用的阴暗面，包括与抑郁症状、社会孤立感和自尊下降的关联。社会比较是指将自己与他人进行比较的过程，被认为会导致这些负面体验，以至于那些更倾向于与他人比较的人特别容易受到社交媒体的有害影响。然而，社交媒体作为一种社会联系和交流的形式，是生活中不可避免的——甚至可以说是不可或缺的一部分，尤其是对于年轻人来说。因此，有必要研究一些策略，以改变人们与社交媒体互动的方式，将其有害影响降至最低，并最大化归属感和联系感。
这项试点研究检验了一种简短的基于网络的干预措施的可行性、可接受性和有效性，该干预措施旨在通过鼓励社会品味作为社会比较的替代方式，来改变与社交媒体的互动并促进心理健康。社会品味被定义为体验与他人经历的幸福相关的愉悦情绪（即为他人感到高兴）。
采用密集纵向设计，55名大学生（平均年龄19.29岁，标准差0.93岁；n = 43，78%为女性，n = 23，42%为白人）完成基线测量（个体差异、心理健康、联系感和社交媒体使用情况），然后进行为期14天的关于他们社交媒体活动和幸福感的每日调查。在第8天，被随机分配接受干预的小组观看了一段指导他们社会品味技巧的视频，并被要求在第8天至第14天练习该技巧。
总体而言，参与者对干预措施的评价积极。在控制基线水平后，观看干预视频的参与者在测试后报告的表现自尊显著高于对照组（P = 0.02）。参与者还报告说，在使用社交媒体时进行更多社会品味的日子里，他们的状态自尊显著更高（P = 0.01），并且随着时间的推移，社会品味的使用显著增加（P = 0.01），这表明参与者发现它很有帮助。与基线相比，两组参与者在测试后报告的社会比较水平均显著降低（对照组：P = 0.01；干预组：P = 0.002），联系感水平均显著提高（对照组：P < 0.001；干预组：P = 0.001）。
这项试点研究的初步证据表明，基于网络的社会品味干预措施可能有助于将社交媒体使用的潜在有害后果降至最低，至少在某些方面是如此。未来需要开展工作，以检验该干预措施在不同年龄组以及部分以与他人比较水平较高为特征的临床样本（例如饮食失调患者）中的有效性和可接受性。
