PsychBook Research

Note

I’m going to retire this blog for a while – please check ciaranmcmahon.ie for more updates.

Thanks,

Ciarán

Sex differences in jealousy over Facebook activity

Highlights

• Females are more prone to jealousy over Facebook activity than are males.
• Males are aware of the sex difference in jealousy; females are not.
• Misunderstandings about Facebook use are a source of problems in romantic relationships.

Abstract

Forty heterosexual undergraduate students 24 females, 16 males who were currently in a romantic relationship filled out a modified version of The Facebook Jealousy questionnaire Muise, Christofides, & Desmarais, 2009. The questionnaire was filled out twice, once with the participant’s own personal responses, and a second time with what each participant imagined that his/her romantic partner’s responses would be like. The data indicated that females were more prone to Facebook-evoked feelings of jealousy and to jealousy-motivated behavior than males. Males accurately predicted these sex differences in response to the jealousy scale, but females seemed unaware that their male partners would be less jealous than themselves.

via Sex differences in jealousy over Facebook activity.

Sharing, Liking, Commenting, and Distressed? The Pathway Between Facebook Interaction and Psychological Distress | Abstract

Very interesting – more research on this needed

Studies on the mental health implications of social media have generated mixed results. Drawing on a survey of college students (N=513), this research uses structural equation modeling to assess the relationship between Facebook interaction and psychological distress and two underlying mechanisms: communication overload and self-esteem. It is the first study, to our knowledge, that examines how communication overload mediates the mental health implications of social media. Frequent Facebook interaction is associated with greater distress directly and indirectly via a two-step pathway that increases communication overload and reduces self-esteem. The research sheds light on new directions for understanding psychological well-being in an increasingly mediated social world as users share, like, and comment more and more.

via Sharing, Liking, Commenting, and Distressed? The Pathway Between Facebook Interaction and Psychological Distress | Abstract.

Facebook and texting made me do it: Media-induced task-switching while studying

Makes for unsurprising and uncomfortable reading:

Electronic communication is emotionally gratifying, but how do such technological distractions impact academic learning? The current study observed 263 middle school, high school and university students studying for 15 min in their homes. Observers noted technologies present and computer windows open in the learning environment prior to studying plus a minute-by-minute assessment of on-task behavior, off-task technology use and open computer windows during studying. A questionnaire assessed study strategies, task-switching preference, technology attitudes, media usage, monthly texting and phone calling, social networking use and grade point average (GPA). Participants averaged less than six minutes on task prior to switching most often due to technological distractions including social media, texting and preference for task-switching. Having a positive attitude toward technology did not affect being on-task during studying. However, those who preferred to task-switch had more distracting technologies available and were more likely to be off-task than others. Also, those who accessed Facebook had lower GPAs than those who avoided it. Finally, students with relatively high use of study strategies were more likely to stay on-task than other students. The educational implications include allowing students short “technology breaks” to reduce distractions and teaching students metacognitive strategies regarding when interruptions negatively impact learning.

ScienceDirect.com – Computers in Human Behavior – Facebook and texting made me do it: Media-induced task-switching while studying.

Self-Affirmation Underlies Facebook Use

Seems to be part of a cycle…

Social network sites, such as Facebook, have acquired an unprecedented following, yet it is unknown what makes them so attractive to users. Here we propose that these sites’ popularity can be understood through the fulfillment of ego needs. We use self-affirmation theory to hypothesize why and when people spend time on their online profiles. Study 1 shows that Facebook profiles are self-affirming in the sense of satisfying users’ need for self-worth and self-integrity. Study 2 shows that Facebook users gravitate toward their online profiles after receiving a blow to the ego, in an unconscious effort to repair their perceptions of self-worth. In addition to illuminating some of the psychological factors that underlie Facebook use, the results provide an important extension to self-affirmation theory by clarifying how self-affirmation operates in people’s everyday environments.

via Self-Affirmation Underlies Facebook Use.