What does media use reveal about personality and mental health? An exploratory investigation among German students.

Julia Brailovskaia,Jürgen Margraf,Peter G Van Der Velden

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0191810

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between personality traits, mental health variables and media use among German students. The data of 633 participants were collected. Results indicate a positive association between general Internet use, general use of social platforms and Facebook use, on the one hand, and self-esteem, extraversion, narcissism, life satisfaction, social support and resilience, on the other hand. Use of computer games was found to be negatively related to these personality and mental health variables. The use of platforms that focus more on written interaction (Twitter, Tumblr) was assumed to be negatively associated with positive mental health variables and significantly positively with depression, anxiety, and stress symptoms. In contrast, Instagram use, which focuses more on photo-sharing, correlated positively with positive mental health variables. Possible practical implications of the present results for mental health, as well as the limitations of the present work are discussed.

Highlights

In 1985, Neil Postman warned his readers against a society ruled by the entertainment industry where picture media would become more important than printed media [1]
Facebook was used by 76.3% of the participants, Instagram by 39.7%, Twitter by 10%, Tumblr by 8.7%, and 24.8% used further SNSs such as Xing and LinkedIn
The present study investigated the relationship between media use, SNSs use, personality and mental health, showing weak but significant results

Summary

Introduction

In 1985, Neil Postman warned his readers against a society ruled by the entertainment industry where picture media (television) would become more important than printed media [1]. The world has experienced several technological revolutions. Notebooks, and mobile phones enable users to join the world of the Internet with new opportunities and dimensions in information acquisition, social interaction, and self-presentation. Fifteen years after Postman’s warning, Howard, Rainie, and Jones [2] analyzed differences in Internet using behavior and described “netizens”, people who use the Internet daily intensively for work and home life and thereby enhance their social relationships. In year 2000, 8% of the U.S adult population belonged into the category of “netizens”. Rainie, and Jones [2] found that women write more e-mails than men, and that younger people use the Internet more frequently to communicate for fun via chat rooms than older people

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