Daily associations between social media use and memory failures: the mediating role of negative affect

Abstract

Daily social media use has been previously linked to worse everyday memory functioning in adulthood; however, the underlying mechanisms that drive these associations are unclear. One pathway in which social media use may negatively influence memory functioning is through a decrease in emotional well-being. Therefore, using a daily diary study from the Midlife in the United States Refresher cohort (MIDUS; n = 782, 25–75 years old), the current study conducted a multilevel structural equation model to examine whether social media use influenced memory failures indirectly through positive and negative affect. Analyses revealed that daily negative affect, but not positive affect, was a significant mediator at the within-person level. On days when social media use was high, individuals reported greater negative affect and in turn, more memory failures. The potential underlying socio-evaluative effects that may drive the association between social media use, negative affect, and memory failures are discussed.