TY - JOUR
T1 - “The Future Is Bright! Is It?”
T2 - Investigating Effects of Hopeful Mental Health Content and Endorsement Cues on Social Media
AU - Beelen, Elien
AU - Karsay, Kathrin
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© The Author(s) 2024.
PY - 2024/7/1
Y1 - 2024/7/1
N2 - Mental health content on social media usually highlights positive emotions, especially hope. This article presents an experimental study on the effects of hopeful social media posts on Instagram. Drawing on appraisal theory and the phenomenon of spillover effects, we developed a 2 × 2 between-subjects post-test experiment, where we manipulated the message type (i.e., hope message vs. control condition) and the level of endorsement (i.e., high vs. low number of likes) of Instagram posts. Following exposure to our media stimuli, we studied the effects on subsequent levels of hope, life satisfaction, mental health stigma, willingness to disclose about mental health, and willingness to provide support on social media among a sample of n = 479 young adults (Mage = 20.97 years, SD = 2.10). Our pre-registered analysis revealed no significant main or interaction effects in the predicted direction. We discuss the findings in the context of health communication, reflect the study’s limitations, and provide suggestions for future research.
AB - Mental health content on social media usually highlights positive emotions, especially hope. This article presents an experimental study on the effects of hopeful social media posts on Instagram. Drawing on appraisal theory and the phenomenon of spillover effects, we developed a 2 × 2 between-subjects post-test experiment, where we manipulated the message type (i.e., hope message vs. control condition) and the level of endorsement (i.e., high vs. low number of likes) of Instagram posts. Following exposure to our media stimuli, we studied the effects on subsequent levels of hope, life satisfaction, mental health stigma, willingness to disclose about mental health, and willingness to provide support on social media among a sample of n = 479 young adults (Mage = 20.97 years, SD = 2.10). Our pre-registered analysis revealed no significant main or interaction effects in the predicted direction. We discuss the findings in the context of health communication, reflect the study’s limitations, and provide suggestions for future research.
KW - experimental research
KW - health communication
KW - hope message
KW - mental health
KW - social media
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85204114859&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1177/20563051241277603
DO - 10.1177/20563051241277603
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85204114859
VL - 10
JO - Social Media + Society
JF - Social Media + Society
SN - 2056-3051
IS - 3
ER -