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Cited by 15Impact of Technology on AdolescentsChild Development and Digital TechnologyMental Health via Writing

Moderating effect of cultural differences on the association between social media use and mental health outcomes in adolescents: a cross-cultural comparison study

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Gordesli, Betul Keles, Leamy, Mary, Murrells, Trevor, Grealish, Annmarie·2024·PLOS ONE
DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0316365PMC PMC11687792
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Abstract

The influence of social media on the mental health of adolescents has been controversial and the findings in the literature are inconclusive. Although prior studies have identified several factors that may cause or trigger the proposed relationship, little is known about the culture-related factors as an underlying mechanism that could explain the complexity of this association. This study addressed this gap by examining the associations between the two domains of social media (i.e., time spent on weekdays and weekends) and two mental health outcomes (anxiety and depression) in adolescents via the moderating effect of horizontal-vertical individualism and collectivism. 299 secondary school students (Mage = 15.21 years; 61% girls) from Türkiye (N = 176), Ireland (N = 70), and England (N = 53) completed self-report surveys. Spending more than four hours on weekdays and weekends was positively associated with anxiety and depression whereas spending more than two hours on social media during weekends was positively associated with anxiety in the entire sample. Horizontal and vertical individualism moderated the association between time spent on social media and depression in the entire sample. The study’s strengths and limitations, along with the implications of the findings for future research, are thoroughly discussed.

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  • People from different cultural backgrounds may engage with SNS platforms in distinct ways, for example using Instagram for self-expression versus Facebook for maintaining family ties.

    “cultural backgrounds may engage with SNS platforms in distinct ways (Vasalou et al., 2010; Gordesli et al., 2024)—for example, using Instagram for self-expression versus Facebook for maintaining family ties.”

    From The associations between social comparison on social media and young adults’ mental health (2025) · cites this paper as Gordesli et al., 2024

    The Introduction section on individualism and collectivism in social media supports the general point that cultural orientation can shape SNS use. It reports Instagram use for self-promotion among Americans, but does not support the specific example of Facebook being used to maintain family ties or the stated contrast between the platforms. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Gordesli, B. K., Leamy, M., Murrells, T., & Grealish, A.
Affiliations
King's College London (GB)
Corresponding author
Grealish, Annmarie
ORCID
Venue
PLOS ONE
Publisher
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Published
2024-12-31
Volume
19
Issue
12
Pages
e0316365
ISSN
1932-6203 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0316365
PMC
PMC11687792
OpenAlex
W4405940811
Cited by
15
References
16
Citations by year
2026: 7 · 2025: 8
FWCI
10.76
Type
journal article
Language
en
Update notices
correction (2025-08-20)
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • PLoS ONE (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
  • Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • University of Limerick Institutional Repository (University of Limerick) (submittedVersion, cc-by-nc-sa)
  • University of Limerick Institutional Repository (University of Limerick)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
  • Social Sciences › Education › Child Development and Digital Technology
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health via Writing
Keywords
social media use, adolescent mental health, anxiety, depression, individualism-collectivism, cultural differences, moderating effect, cross-cultural comparison, Turkey, Ireland, England
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Anxiety, Cross-Cultural Comparison, Depression, England, Female, Humans, Ireland, Male, Mental Health, Surveys and Questionnaires, Students, Social Media

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