Empathetic Expression and Public Response in Weibo Comments Following Youth Self-Disclosure

This study examined how different forms of empathetic-supportive expression in Weibo comments were associated with public responses to youth self-disclosure. The sample included 1,296 comments nested within 180 distress-related posts by users whose public self-presentation indicated an age or educational stage consistent with 14–19 years. Comments were multilabel-coded for six components: emotional validation, cognitive understanding, emotional care, action support, moral defense, and brief reassurance. Negative binomial models were used to predict comment likes and replies separately. Action support was positively associated with both likes and replies, whereas emotional validation and emotional care were associated primarily with replies. In addition, comments combining understanding-oriented expression with action support received more replies, but not more likes. These findings suggest that different supportive functions correspond to different forms of public interaction and that empathy should not be treated as a unitary category. Because the study is observational, the results reflect associations rather than causal effects.