Self-construal and Facebook activities: Exploring differences in social interaction orientation

•Two studies explore the relationships between self-construal and FB activities.•Interdependent self-construals are associated with social interaction orientation.•Social interaction orientation explains different Facebook activities.•Social goals mediate between self-construals and social interaction.

Two studies explore the relationship between interdependent and independent self-construal and activities on Facebook. Study 1 proposes a model that depicts the process by which interdependent self-construal relates to different interaction orientations, responsiveness, and self-disclosure, which further explain different patterns of Facebook activities. A survey study offers support for the proposed model. Study 2 extends Study 1 by arguing that people with an interdependent self-construal differ in their social goals, whether passive (i.e., to belong) or active (i.e., to be popular). An extended model depicts the roles of these two social goals in explaining different social orientations, which are associated with varied patterns of Facebook activities. A second survey confirms the extended model.