SNS Usage Time and Self-Esteem Among Middle School Students: The Mediating Role of Body Image and Sense of Safety

Objectives: Given the growing concerns about adolescent SNS (Social Networking Sites) use and inconsistent findings in previous research, this study investigates the mechanisms linking SNS usage time to self-esteem among middle school students. Specifically, we examine how body image and a sense of safety mediate this association, aiming to better understand the developmental pathways through which SNS usage affects adolescent self-esteem.Methods: This study utilized data from the 14th wave of the Panel Study on Korean Children with a sample of 1,323 first-year middle school students. The key variables included SNS usage time, body image, sense of safety, and self-esteem, while controlling for gender, peer attachment, and subjective socio-economic status. Structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the associations among the variables, and bootstrapping with 1,000 resamples was conducted to test the significance of the mediating effects.Results: While the direct path from SNS usage duration to self-esteem was not significant, a significant negative association was found between these variables, indicating that increased SNS usage tends to be associated with lower self-esteem among middle school students. Both body image and sense of safety demonstrated significant indirect effects in mediating this association.Conclusion: This study delineates the specific pathways through which middle school students’ self-esteem is impacted by the amount of time they spend on SNS, particularly highlighting the mediating roles of body image and sense of safety. The findings suggest the need for careful attention to these students’ SNS usage time, along with comprehensive support to foster positive perceptions of their appearance and environmental surroundings.