Research Note—Why Following Friends Can Hurt You: An Exploratory Investigation of the Effects of Envy on Social Networking Sites among College-Age Users

Krasnova, Hanna; Widjaja, Thomas; Buxmann, Peter; Wenninger, Helena; Benbasat, Izak (2015). Research Note—Why Following Friends Can Hurt You: An Exploratory Investigation of the Effects of Envy on Social Networking Sites among College-Age Users. Information Systems Research, 26(3), pp. 585-605. Informs 10.1287/isre.2015.0588

[img] Text
Research Note - Why Following Friends Can Hurt You.pdf - Published Version
Restricted to registered users only
Available under License Publisher holds Copyright.

Download (1MB) | Request a copy

Research findings on how participation in social networking sites (SNSs) affects users’ subjective well-being are equivocal. Some studies suggest a positive impact of SNSs on users’ life satisfaction and mood, whereas others report undesirable consequences such as depressive symptoms and anxiety. However, whereas the factors behind the positive effects have received significant scholarly attention, little is known about the mechanisms that underlie the unfavorable consequences. To fill this gap, this study uses social comparison theory and the responses of 1,193 college-age Facebook users to investigate the role of envy in the SNS context as a potential contributor to those undesirable outcomes. Arising in response to social information consumption, envy is shown to be associated with reduced cognitive and affective well-being as well as increased reactive self-enhancement. These preliminary findings contribute to the growing body of information systems research investigating the dysfunctional consequences of information technology adoption in general and social media participation in particular.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

03 Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences > Department of Business Management > Institute of Information Systems
03 Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences > Department of Business Management > Institute of Information Systems > Information Management

UniBE Contributor:

Krasnova, Hanna

Subjects:

000 Computer science, knowledge & systems
300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 330 Economics

ISSN:

1047-7047

Publisher:

Informs

Projects:

[391] The Impact of Social Media Use on Subjective Well-Being and Performance of Adolescents

Language:

English

Submitter:

Alisa Petrova

Date Deposited:

30 Sep 2015 10:59

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 14:49

Publisher DOI:

10.1287/isre.2015.0588

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.72031

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/72031

Actions (login required)

Edit item Edit item
Provide Feedback