The reciprocal and indirect relationships between passive Facebook use, comparison on Facebook, and adolescents' body dissatisfaction

Facebook has been found to provide a fertile ground for social comparison. Emerging evidence indicates that social comparison may mediate the relationship between Facebook use and young people's body dissatisfaction. Yet, little work has been done on how these relationships evolve over time in adolescence and no study has examined the reciprocal relationships between passive Facebook use, social comparison, and adolescents' body dissatisfaction. To examine these reciprocal relationships, two-wave panel data (NTime1 = 1840) gathered among adolescents (ages 12-19) were analyzed. Cross-lagged structural equation models indicated that passive Facebook use at Time 1 predicted increases in boys' comparison on Facebook at Time 2. Comparison on Facebook at Time 2, in turn, was associated with more body dissatisfaction at Time 2. In addition, body dissatisfaction at Time 1 predicted increases in comparison on Facebook at Time 2. Comparison on Facebook at Time 2, in turn, was related to more passive Facebook use at Time 2, but less passive Facebook use over time. No gender differences were found for these opposite pathways. The discussion focuses on the explanation and understanding of these findings.