Can Inflammation Predict Social Media Use? Linking a Biological Marker of Systemic Inflammation with Social Media Use Among College Students and Middle-Aged Adults

Lee, David S. and Jiang, Tao and Crocker, Jennifer and Way, Baldwin M., Can Inflammation Predict Social Media Use? Linking a Biological Marker of Systemic Inflammation with Social Media Use Among College Students and Middle-Aged Adults. SSRN, Dec 5 2022. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4281080

Abstract: Although much research has examined the impact of social media use, relatively less is known about what predicts social media use. Drawing on recent evidence that inflammation may promote social affiliative motivation, the present research proposes a novel, biopsychosocial perspective that inflammation may be associated with more social media use. Using a nationally representative sample of middle-aged adults (N = 524), Study 1 found a positive association between C-reactive protein (CRP), a biomarker of systemic inflammation, and the amount of social media people used. Study 2 (N = 228) showed that among college students CRP was prospectively associated with more social media use 6 weeks later. Providing stronger evidence of the directionality of this effect, Study 3 (N = 171) showed that CRP predicted increased social media use in the subsequent week even after controlling for current week’s use. Additionally, in exploratory analyses of CRP and different types of social media use in the same week, CRP was only associated with using social media for social interaction and not for other purposes (e.g., entertainment). The present research sheds light on a biopsychosocial antecedent to social media use and highlights potential benefits of using biological measures in social media research.

Keywords: Social media use, inflammation, C-reactive protein, mental health, physical health, well-being