The dual-edged relationship between social media features and online social anxiety: the mediating role of negative beliefs in online social interaction

As a vital complement to face-to-face social interactions, social media has become an indispensable part of people's daily lives. Numerous studies have observed that individuals with social anxiety tend to prefer online interactions, believing that online socializing provides a more comfortable experience and helps them avoid the potential awkwardness of in-person encounters. Although existing research has revealed both positive and negative effects of social media on social anxiety, most studies focus on exploring different mechanisms rather than delving into the complex features of social media itself. In this research, we take a media-centric approach, employing qualitative and quantitative research methods to cross-examine the dual-edged impact of social media features on social anxiety. Additionally, we investigate the mediating role of negative beliefs in this context. To explore the relationship between social media features and social anxiety, Study One conducted interviews with 31 college students experiencing social anxiety. Thematic analysis found five advantageous features that mitigate social anxiety, including availability, anonymity, diversity, controllability, and reduced cues, and five problematic features that exacerbate online social anxiety, encompassing asynchronicity, monotony, permanence, ambiguity, and information overload. Study Two developed Beliefs in Online Social Interaction Scale (BOSS) with 367 samples. Exploratory factor analysis revealed that the scale comprises three dimensions: Negative Evaluation, Social Mishaps and Costs, and Privacy Exposure. A second wave of 497 samples confirmed the scale's reliability and validity using confirmatory factor analysis. Study Three used a cross-sectional design with 584 samples to validate the relationship between social media features and online social anxiety, examining the mediating role of negative beliefs. Results showed that asynchronicity and missing cues increased online social anxiety, while controllability decreased it. Negative beliefs in online social interaction also significantly positively predicted online social anxiety. These negative beliefs partially mediated the relationship between cues absence and controllability, and fully mediated the relationship between availability, anonymity, and online social anxiety. This research concludes that different social media features impact online social anxiety differently. Additionally, negative beliefs in online social interactions play a mediating role in social anxiety.