Disentangling the Role of Social Networking Attitudes and Use on Emotional Well-being

Scholarly research examining social networking and well-being have provided contradictory results, suggesting that further research explore the complex relationships between antecedents, behavior, and well-being outcomes. In this study, we assess how attitudes toward social networking and SNS use influence emotional well-being by surveying a sample of U.S. adults (N = 500). We apply theories of technology adoption and media choice to explicate the role of communication attitudes in predicting behavioral outcomes. The results of our structural equation model demonstrate that SNS use negatively impacts users’ emotional well-being. Social connection, ease of use, and confidence attitudes increase SNS use and have an indirect influence on well-being. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings as well as future directions for research involving frequent SNS use and emotional well-being are discussed.

Control Dimensions of Media Task-Switching and Emotional Well-being

Frequent task-switching between communication media is ubiquitous. Recent research on the topic highlights that multiple dimensions compete to predict task performance and productivity while multitasking. However, the emotional impact of task-switching is understudied and is an important outcome for understanding communication technology use and its potential effects on people’s well-being. This research used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to gather task-switching and emotional data in real-time through a smart phone application. The emotional effect of the task control multitasking dimensions was assessed via a structural equation model. Results show attitudes toward task-switching moderate emotional valence, but arousal increases with frequency of task-switches. Furthermore, attitudes toward task-switching do not predict frequency of task-switches, contrary to assumptions made in previous research and indicating a loss of control of task-switching behaviors.

Tomorrowland Around the World 2020: A Virtual Pilgrimage

The year 2020 was devastating to electronic music festivals and their attendees as the COVID-19 pandemic forced most festivals to cancel their events. Because attendance at these festivals is a sacred experience for many of their participants, this manifested as a loss for participants. Tomorrowland, however, created a virtual festival through filming DJ performances and working with visual effects teams. Tomorrowland Around the World functioned to constitute a global public. This paper will situate the electronic music scene in a spiritual context that promotes the well-being of its participants. Next, the paper will explain how the DJ performances worked with the visual production teams to create a sacred virtual space that promoted unity, love, life, and a general sense of well-being.

Investigating the Relationship between Social Media Use, Big Five Personality, and Well-being

This study investigates the relationship between social media use, Big Five personality traits, and subjective well-being to determine how different personality traits relate to different measures of social media use and well- being, and which variable influences well-being the most. Participants completed established measures for the Big Five personality traits, social media engagement, social media intensity, satisfaction with life, positive and negative affect, and depression. Results showed that extraversion predicted social media engagement and intensity, and social media time. Conscientiousness predicted spending less time on social media. In addition, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism predicted positive well-being stronger than did social media use. When conducting five separate regression analyses with a social media use variable and a different personality variable each time, four times (conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism) the personality variable predicted negative well-being more strongly than did the social media use variable. However, negative well-being was predicted more strongly by social media use than by the fifth personality variable, openness to change. Results are discussed and possible future investigations are suggested.

Ethics for a Digital Age (Vol. II) [Book Review]

The second volume of Ethics for a Digital Age edited by Bastiaan Vanacker and Don Heider (2018) highlights research presented at the fifth and sixth Annual International Symposia on Digital Ethics. The volume features ten essays organized under three banner topics that include 1) Trust, Privacy, and Corporate Responsibility; 2) Technology, Ethics, and the Shifting Role of Journalism; and 3) Ethics and Ontology. Together, the essays aim to invigorate conversations about ethical issues in professional and philosophical contexts. In this review, I first provide a synopsis of each section and its corresponding essays to give readers a sense of the depth and breadth of topics covered in the volume. I conclude the review by identifying themes that unite the essays and broadly contribute to this robust field of inquiry.