Compensatory internet use among individuals higher in social anxiety and its implications for well-being

Abstract

The social compensation hypothesis states that the internet primarily benefits individuals who feel uncomfortable communicating face-to-face. In the current research, we tested whether individuals higher in social anxiety use the internet as a compensatory social medium, and whether such use is associated with greater well-being. In Study 1, individuals higher in social anxiety reported greater feelings of comfort and self-disclosure when socializing online than less socially anxious individuals, but reported less self-disclosure when communicating face-to-face. However, in Study 2, social anxiety was associated with lower quality of life and higher depression most strongly for individuals who communicated frequently online. Our results suggest that, whereas social anxiety may be associated with using the internet as an alternative to face-to-face communication, such a strategy may result in poorer well-being.

Mediation Effects of Internet Addiction on Shame and Social Networking

“…This finding supports other studies reporting that shame plays an important role in social networking [5,7,10,14]. Additionally, Ryan and Xenos [32] report that frequency of Facebook usage varies as a result of certain user characteristics, like shyness.…”

“…This increased comfort may be because online platforms can wipe away insecurity and unconfident feelings with the alternative of being able to contact other people without any face-to-face communication. Previous literature is consistent with the idea, noting that individuals with higher levels of social anxiety report a comparatively greater feeling of comfort when socializing online than when socializing face-to-face [6,7]. It can be deduced from this information that shame may play an important role in online socialization.…”

Exploring how social networking sites impact youth with anxiety: A qualitative study of Facebook stressors among adolescents with an anxiety disorder diagnosis

“…It is known that adolescents with social anxiety disorder (SAD) are more likely to use SNSs rather than face-to-face interactions to garner social support (Indian & Grieve, 2014;Weidman et al, 2012). However, Facebook use has limited ability to contribute positively to the well-being of individuals with SAD and may eventually result in increased propensity for poor outcomes and lower quality of life (Indian & Grieve, 2014;Weidman et al, 2012). In a recent study, Shaw et al (2015), found that greater SAD symptoms predicted increased passive Facebook use and this relationship was mediated by brooding, a known risk factor for SAD.…”

Computer-Mediated Communication and Its Influence on Psychological Functioning

“…In a similar vein, a study examining well-being and Internet usage suggest that frequent online social communication by socially anxious persons to replace FtF socialization is linked to lower quality of life and depression [14]. This was true despite the strong relationship between social interaction anxiety and comfort and online self-disclosure.…”