Social Media Use and Patterns of Emotional Experience A Consideration of Anxiety, Depression, and Hope

Given the explosion in social media use since the early 2000s, scholars, parents, physicians, psychologists, and other vested parties have expressed concern over the effects such use might have on users, especially in terms of mental health. This chapter focuses specifically on the relationships between social media use and emotion-based experiences, which in turn relate to mental wellness. Key theoretical perspectives on why people respond emotionally to social media content, including cognitive appraisal theory and social comparison theory, are outlined. The extant literature on the ways in which repeated use of social media may contribute to both negative and positive emotional experiences is then reviewed, with particular focus on anxiety and depression as well as hope and inspiration. Mediating and moderating influences are also considered, with attention to issues related to the nature of social media use and the user’s life stage.