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Category: Project

Description: Social media platforms like Instagram are increasingly taking up space in the lives of young adults. This observation is concerning as data suggests their use is associated with numerous negative impacts on users. In this project, we will focus on two significant impacts that can decrease the quality of life for young adults: increased depressive symptoms and decreased self-esteem. Studying the mechanisms behind these impacts is a societal issue that is crucial to address. We propose that the increase in depressive symptoms and the decrease in self-esteem could be caused by repeated experiences of upward social comparisons—when one compares oneself to someone better or superior—experienced on these platforms. Indeed, upward social comparisons can be perceived as aversive experiences, and the nature of the content found on social media means that young adults are confronted with these types of aversive stimuli much more than in the past. It is also important to consider that the content proposed by these platforms is increasingly defined by machine learning algorithms. This has the significant consequence that users feel less and less control over the content they are exposed to, including upward social comparisons. To study the negative impacts of social media use by capturing the central characteristics of their use—repeated upward social comparisons and a low sense of control—we propose an original angle: the theoretical and methodological framework of the Learned Helplessness Theory. This theory has played a central role in our understanding of the processes involved in the development of depressive symptoms following repeated aversive experiences in a context characterized by a low sense of control. This innovative approach will allow us to achieve our two objectives: 1) experimentally test the CAUSAL role of upward social comparisons made on social media on depressive symptoms and self-esteem, and 2) study whether the sense of control during exposure to upward social comparisons plays a role in the negative effects associated with the use of these platforms. We propose that the increase in depressive symptoms and the decrease in self-esteem could be caused by repeated experiences of upward social comparisons—when one compares oneself to someone better or superior—experienced on these platforms. Indeed, upward social comparisons can be perceived as aversive experiences, and the nature of the content found on social media means that young adults are confronted with these types of aversive stimuli much more than in the past. It is also important to consider that the content proposed by these platforms is increasingly defined by machine learning algorithms. This has the significant consequence that users feel less and less control over the content they are exposed to, including upward social comparisons. To study the negative impacts of social media use by capturing the central characteristics of their use—repeated upward social comparisons and a low sense of control—we propose an original angle: the theoretical and methodological framework of the Learned Helplessness Theory. This theory has played a central role in our understanding of the processes involved in the development of depressive symptoms following repeated aversive experiences in a context characterized by a low sense of control. This innovative approach will allow us to achieve our two objectives: 1) experimentally test the CAUSAL role of upward social comparisons made on social media on depressive symptoms and self-esteem, and 2) study whether the sense of control during exposure to upward social comparisons plays a role in the negative effects associated with the use of these platforms.