Social Media Use Among Students and Its Psychological and Social Effects

Authors

Keywords:

Social media, social comparison, mental health

Abstract

Mental health is a state of well-being that enables individuals to cope with life’s demands and work productively. This study investigated the correlations between social media usage time, user engagement, social comparison, and mental health among university students. A total of 172 students from João Pessoa, Brazil, aged 18 to 55 years (M = 24.2; SD = 6.74), participated in the study. Measures included self-reported time spent on social media, the Iowa-Netherlands Comparison Orientation Measure (INCOM), and the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21). Results revealed a sequential mediation of engagement and social comparison in the relationship between time spent on social media and levels of stress, anxiety, and depression. These findings suggest an underlying psychological mechanism linking social media use to mental health outcomes.

Author Biographies

  • Maria Beatriz Rodrigues Delfino, FACENE

    Graduanda em Psicologia pela Faculdade Nova Esperança

  • Stephanie Formiga Franklin Vieira , FACENE

    Graduanda em psicologia pela Faculdade Nova Esperança

  • Luiz Fernando Oliveira da Silva , FACENE

    Graduando em psicologia pela Faculdade Nova Esperança

  • Samara Cristina Gomes Teixeira, FAMENE

    Graduanda em medicina pela Faculdade Nova Esperança

  • Adriana Suenya Freitas Gonzaga, FAMENE

    Graduada em medicina pela Faculdade Nova Esperança

  • Tamyres Tomaz Paiva, FACENE

    Professora do curso de psicologia da FACENE, doutora em Psicologia Social pela UFPB

  • Suiane Magalhães Tavares, Faculdade Nova Esperança - FACENE

    Professora do curso de Psicologia na FACENE, Drª em Psicologia Social pela UFPB

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Published

2026-08-05

Issue

Vol. 4 No. 1 (2026)

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2026 Maria Beatriz Rodrigues Delfino, Stephanie Formiga Franklin Vieira , Luiz Fernando Oliveira da Silva , Samara Cristina Gomes Teixeira, Adriana Suenya Freitas Gonzaga, Tamyres Tomaz Paiva, Suiane Magalhães Tavares (Author)

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

Authors who publish with Latin American Psychology retain all copyrights and publishing rights without restrictions. Articles are published under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence (CC BY 4.0). This licence permits others to copy, distribute, and adapt the work, provided appropriate credit is given to the original authors and the source of publication.

How to Cite

Social Media Use Among Students and Its Psychological and Social Effects. (2026). Latin American Psychology, 4(1). https://latinamericanpsychology.com/index.php/lapsy/article/view/7