The Impact of Social Media Use on Anxiety Among University Students: An Empirical Study from the Perspectives of Media Dependency and Emotional Contagion

DOI: https://doi.org/10.62517/jmsd.202612212

Author(s)

Miaohan Wu

Affiliation(s)

Xi’an British Council, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China *Corresponding Author

Abstract

With the widespread adoption of social media, anxiety levels among university students have gradually increased in everyday life. Social media has become not only a major channel for information acquisition, but also a primary platform through which students interact, seek entertainment, and express emotions. However, platform characteristics such as the diffusion of negative emotions and information overload [4,5] may exert profound influences on students’ mental health. Grounded in Media Dependency Theory and Emotional Contagion Theory, this study examines the relationship between social media use and anxiety among university students.The existing studies indicate that social media use-particularly passive browsing-shows a clear positive association with university students’ anxiety levels, and the literature suggests that media dependency and emotional contagion function as important mediators in this relationship.

Keywords

Social Media; University Students; Anxiety; Media Dependency; Emotional Contagion; Empirical Research

References

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