Authoritative Parenting Moderates the Association Between Social Media Use and Self-Esteem in Young Adults

Research has suggested that social media use has psychological risks and benefits in adolescents and young adults (see Reid & Weigle, 2014, for an overview). The contradictory results suggest that the link between social media use and psychological outcomes could depend on moderating variables. This study examined whether self-perceived parenting style could be one of these moderators. As part of a more extensive study, young adult college students (N = 338, Mage = 19.21 years, SD = 1.72 years) completed questionnaires assessing perceived parenting styles, social media intensity (e.g., felt need to check social media), and self-esteem. The study found that authoritative parenting (i.e., warm parents who set reasonable demands on their children) predicts increased self-esteem for college students who report feeling immersed in Instagram (β = .13, p = .013) and X (β = .17, p = .002) but not Facebook (β = .03, p = .529). Surprisingly, permissive and authoritarian parenting did not moderate any association between social media immersion and self-esteem. The study was limited by using only three primary social media platforms and potential bias as a result of using self-reported surveys. Future directions are discussed.