JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Literature has underscored dark aspects of social media use, including associations with depressive symptoms, feelings of social isolation, and diminished self-esteem—as examples. 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 to others are particularly vulnerable 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 detrimental effects and maximize feelings of affiliation and connection.

Objective:

This pilot study examined the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of a brief online 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 (i.e., feeling happy for someone else).

Methods:

Following an intensive longitudinal design, 55 college students (mean age 19.29 years, SD 0.93, 78% female, 42% White) completed baseline measures (individual differences, psychological wellbeing, connectedness, and social media use) and then 14 days of daily surveys on their social media activity and well-being. At Day 8, the group randomized to receive the intervention watched a video instructing them on the skill of social savoring and were asked to practice that skill during Days 8-14.

Results:

Overall, participants reported positive perceptions of the intervention. Participants who watched the intervention video reported significantly higher performance self-esteem at post-test than those in the control condition, controlling for baseline levels. Participants also reported significantly higher state self-esteem on days in which they engaged in more social savoring while using social media, and the use of social savoring increased significantly over time, suggesting participants found it helpful. Participants in both conditions reported significantly lower levels of social comparison and higher levels of connectedness from baseline to post-test.

Conclusions:

Initial evidence from this pilot study suggests that an online 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 (e.g., eating disorders).