JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Social networking sites (SNS) such as Facebook have been central to the global exchange of health-related information throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but during this time online interactions have arisen as a source of stress and conflict for many SNS-users. Prior research suggests that many users have engaged in significant “boundary regulation”, during this period, using online behaviors such as “unfriending” to refine and reorient their social networks in response to pandemic related information.

Objective:

This study examines Facebook “unfriending” during (and related to) the first year of the pandemic in order to better understand how SNS users have managed and maintained their social networks around COVID-19. On one hand, unfriending may be motivated by an attempt to protect the utility/accuracy of a users’ informational environment. On the other, it may be motivated by a desire to “tune out” alternative viewpoints/opinions. Both motivations may have significant implications for public health discourse and outcomes

Methods:

A sample of 824 active Facebook users (drawn from a representative survey of 1,000 American adults) was analyzed using a series of logit regression models. Survey respondents were selected via a stratified quota sampling approach to ensure a representative sample of the U.S. population. Balanced quotas were determined (by region of the country) for gender, age, race, ethnicity, and political affiliation.

Results:

In total, 31.7% (261/824) of active Facebook users unfriended at least one account over COVID-related posts during the first year of the pandemic. The most common reasons for unfriending included “making political comments about COVID-19” (23.2%; 191/824) and “posting information that was inconsistent with public health guidelines” (19.7%; 162/824). As hypothesized, reliance on Facebook for COVID-related news/information was associated with a greater likelihood of unfriending, particularly in response to information that was inconsistent with public health guidelines. Political factors (particularly partisan intensity) were also predictive of unfriending, especially in the case of COVID-related disagreements.

Conclusions:

Both information utility concerns and political factors were associated with a greater likelihood of COVID-related unfriending, though the magnitude of effects associated with utility appear to be greater. While utility-motivated unfriending may lead to more reliable health information experiences for some SNS-users, the tendency of consumers to assess accuracy and credibility on the basis of partisan predilections obscures this finding and warrants further consideration. Clinical Trial: n/a