Associations Between Social Appearance Anxiety, Problematic Social Media Use, Selfitis Behavior, and Adaptable Self: A Moderated-Mediation Model
Associations Between Social Appearance Anxiety, Problematic Social Media Use, Selfitis Behavior, and Adaptable Self: A Moderated-Mediation Model

Summary/Abstract: The objective of this study was to explore the relationships between social appearance anxiety, problematic social media use (PSMU), selfitis behavior, and adaptable self through the application of a moderated-mediation model. In total, 804 social media users from Türkiye (Mage = 30.45 ± 8.12; 61.9% women) completed the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale, Social Appearance Anxiety Scale, Presentation of Online Self Scale, and Selfitis Behavior Scale. A parallel mediation model indicated that social appearance anxiety predicted PSMU. Further, selfitis behaviors and adaptable self mediated the effects of social appearance anxiety on PSMU. Lastly, adaptable self-moderated the relationship between social appearance anxiety and selfitis behaviors. The study suggests that social appearance anxiety can be considered a risk factor, and the adaptable self and selfities behavior may mitigate the effect of social media appearance anxiety on problematic social media use. These findings can inform the development of interventions and preventive strategies to reduce the psychopathological effects of social media addiction.

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