Abstract

The present study examines the relationship between social media comparison pressure, self-esteem-depend ent use of social media and depressive mood in an online recruited sample of social media users (n = 103). The theoretical starting point is social comparative theory, concepts of contingent self-esteem and cognitive models of depression. All variables were recorded using specially developed Likert scales (1-5). The de scriptive results show an increased level of social media comparison pressure as well as a medium level of self-esteem-dependent online self-regulation; the depressive mood is in the slightly to moderately elevated range. Correlation analyses show medium, significant correlations between comparative pressure, self-esteem dependence and depressive symptoms. A regression-based mediation analysis with bootstrapping shows a significant indirect effect of social media comparison pressure on depressive mood via self-esteem-dependent use, while at the same time maintaining a direct effect. The findings speak in favor of partial mediation and support the assumption that social media has a particularly stressful effect where frequent upward compari sons meet a fragile, externally regulated self-esteem. In practice, the results imply that preventive and thera peutic approaches should not primarily aim at reducing use, but at strengthening a less feedback-dependent, internally anchored self-esteem and a reflection on the comparative logics of digital environments.

DOI: doi.org/10.63721/25JPIR0126

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