The associations between social comparison on social media and young adults’ mental health

Together, these findings highlight the crucial role of both exposure to and extremity of upward social comparisons in the complex relationship between SNSs use and mental health. These two factors contribute significantly though modestly to the effects of SNSs on self-esteem and depressive symptoms (<i>R</i> ² between 6 and 9%), underscoring the need for further research on individual and contextual variables that may mitigate their adverse psychological consequences.