The temporality and accessibility of message types (TAMT) model: Examining social media message types and the associations between exposure to alcohol and binge drinking

Abstract

Scholars have indicated that social media contribute to various health-related behaviors (e.g., substance use, body dissatisfaction) among adolescents. This study adds to the literature on health-related social media effects through theoretical advances supported by empirical evidence. First, we introduce the TAMT model, in which we assess the media environment along a continuum of two dimensions: the temporality (from ephemeral to persistent) and accessibility (from private to public) of message types. By combining these dimensions, we argue that there are four message types: ephemeral private, persistent private, ephemeral public, and persistent public. Second, we draw on the TAMT model to advance our knowledge of the role of social media in alcohol-related behaviors. We expected that, due to the distinctive characteristics of the four message types, they would be differently related to alcohol references and binge drinking. Based on cross-sectional data (N = 1,636, Mage = 15, SD = 1.17), we found that moderate alcohol references are encountered across all message types, while more extreme references are more likely to be prevalent in ephemeral public and ephemeral private messages. We show that exposure to moderate and extreme alcohol use references in ephemeral private and persistent private messages was associated with a higher probability of engaging in binge drinking, whereas exposure to ephemeral public and persistent public messages was not. Ephemeral private messages played the most crucial role in the association with binge drinking. These findings illustrate the importance of broadening the scope of research to ephemeral private environments when studying health-related behaviors. While we have illustrated the usefulness of the TAMT model against the background of two specific types of alcohol references, this new model can be extended to other behaviors (e.g., sexual risk-taking behaviors, cyberbullying).

A qualitative analysis of adolescents' perspectives on peer and influencer alcohol‐related posts on social media

“…Adolescents frequently encounter alcohol-related posts from influencers, in which alcohol consumption is depicted as a positive, social activity [10,38,39] and associated with luxurious lifestyles [13]. In addition to portraying general alcohol use, it is also common for influencer posts to display branded alcohol (e.g., [10,38]), which is known to increase risk for subsequent substance use in adolescents [40].…”

“…Per the Message Interpretation Process Model, the impact of media exposure is the result of one's cognitive and affective response to it [15][16][17][18], including how realistic, trustworthy, relevant or aspirational an individual perceives the content or poster to be [13]. Adolescents may perceive or attend to peer and influencer alcoholrelated posts differently, which may result in differential impacts on alcohol-related attitudes and behaviours.…”

“…Peers serve as immediate and accessible reference points for social comparison, and because their alcohol-related posts may be perceived as more personally relevant and realistic than non-peer posts [7], their impact on adolescent drinking behaviours may be greater [19]. Conversely, social media influencers represent aspirational figures whose influence may derive from upward social comparison and adolescents' desire to emulate the qualities and lifestyles they portray (e.g., [13]). The Prototype Willingness Model [20] may provide an explanation for the unique impact of social media influencers, whereby adolescent exposure to the aspirational content of preferred influencers may inform their prototype of who engages in those behaviours as well as their outcomes, thus increasing their willingness to do the same.…”

“…Strong evidence exists that alcohol-related social media posts by peers [7][8][9] and influencers [10,11] are prevalent and influential. While recent qualitative and quantitative research has explored adolescent exposure to and perception of peer [12] and influencer alcohol content [13,14], none have directly compared adolescent perceptions of peer versus influencer posts.…”

“Boys are Allowed to be Drunk”: Exploring Gender Norms in Adolescents' Alcohol References Across Different Social Media Platforms and Message Types

“…Moreover, all these platforms have updated their features to enable the sharing of different message types, including more ephemeral and private ones. Ephemeral messages like Instagram Stories are characterized by being short-lived, while private communications like Facebook Messages are restricted to a limited audience of self-selected individuals (Vranken et al, 2022). These changes have resulted in substantial differences in the nature of alcohol posts, which range from moderate to more extreme (Vranken et al, 2022).…”