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Cited by 176Impact of Technology on AdolescentsEmotions and Moral BehaviorPsychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction

Social comparison and envy on social media: a critical review

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Meier, Adrian, Johnson, Benjamin K.·2022·Current Opinion in Psychology
DOI 10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101302

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Abstract

There is both public and scholarly concern that (passive) social media use decreases well-being by providing a fertile ground for harmful (upward) social comparison and envy. The present review critically summarizes evidence on this assumption. We first comprehensively synthesize existing evidence, including both prior reviews and the most recent publications (2019-2021). Results show that earlier research finds social comparison and envy to be common on social media and linked to lower well-being. Yet, increasingly, newer studies contradict this conclusion, finding positive links to well-being as well as heterogeneous, person-specific, conditional, and reverse or reciprocal effects. The review identifies four critical conceptual and methodological limitations of existing evidence, which offer new impulses for future research.

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  • The relationship between SNS use and wellbeing is context-dependent, with effects sometimes beneficial and sometimes detrimental, and may vary based on user motivations, content type, and platform engagement styles.

    “Recent work suggests that the relationship between SNSs use and wellbeing is highly context-dependent and may vary based on user motivations, content type, and platform engagement styles”

    From The associations between social comparison on social media and young adults’ mental health (2025) · cites this paper as Meier and Johnson, 2022

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References 58 · Cited by 176

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Authors
Meier, A., & Johnson, B. K.
Affiliations
  • Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (DE)
  • University of Florida (US)
Corresponding author
Meier, Adrian
ORCID
Venue
Current Opinion in Psychology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2022-06
Volume
45
Pages
101302
ISSN
2352-250X (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.copsyc.2022.101302
OpenAlex
W4225774563
Cited by
176
References
58
Citations by year
2026: 46 · 2025: 48 · 2024: 45 · 2023: 27 · 2022: 9
FWCI
5.42
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Current Opinion in Psychology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PsyArXiv (OSF Preprints) (submittedVersion)
  • PsyArXiv (OSF Preprints) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Emotions and Moral Behavior
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Psychological Well-being and Life Satisfaction
Keywords
social comparison, envy, upward social comparison, social media use, well-being, passive social media use, reciprocal effects, methodological limitations
MeSH terms
Social Comparison, Fertility, Humans, Jealousy, Social Media

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