The widespread use of social media has promoted extensive academic research on this channel. The present study conducts a systematic analysis of extant research on social media use among young people in China. This systematic literature review aims to identify and bridge gaps in topics, theories, variables, and conceptual frameworks in studies of social media usage among young people in China. The study aims to develop a cause–effect framework that shows the causal relationships among research structures. The PRISMA method is used to review 20 articles drawn from the Scopus and Google Scholar databases. From the analysis, 10 major research topics, eight theories or models, and a complete framework of causal relations emerge. It is recommended that future research on social media should include a greater diversity of types of social media, investigate a wider range of research topics, and adopt different theories or models. Researchers should also implement a more complete and detailed systematic method for reviewing literature on social media research in China.

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This study aims to identify the moderating effect of gender on the relationship between TikTok usage and positive emotion among TikTok users in China. As TikTok is a new emerging social media, there are few researches on TikTok usage and its association with positive emotion among TikTok users in China. To fill the gap, this study utilized a quantitative research method by using survey approach. A cross-sectional study was adopted, while the questionnaires were distributed online in this study. The study has collected 244 questionnaires through convenience sampling technique. The results shown that both of the two predictors which are perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use toward using TikTok are significantly associated with positive emotion among TikTok users in China. However, gender does not play a moderating role on the relationship between TikTok usage and positive emotion. It was found that the users of TikTok are mainly young generation. This study suggests that users should use TikTok reasonably and appropriately.