The Grass is Always Greener in Someone Else's Profile Picture: The Role of SEM in Initiating Benign and Malicious Envy on Facebook Users

Abstract

The social networking site Facebook is a popular domain where people can share pictures, status updates, and communicate with one another over the internet. While there are benefits to the ability to connect electronically with friends who are geographically distant, recent research illustrates a potentially damaging effect on well-being. In particular, envy plays a mediating role in the relationship between Facebook use and more negative affect and increased depressive symptoms. Although envy can produce positive emotions, as well as motivation to improve oneself, past research primarily identifies only deleterious effects of envy. Through the theoretical framework of the self-evaluation maintenance model, evidence for the phenomena of benign and malicious envy was explored to provide a more complete look at the impact of envy on Facebook.