Social Media Usage Is Associated With Lower Knowledge About Anxiety and Indiscriminate Use of Anxiety Coping Strategies

Social media usage and anxiety disorders are highly prevalent among emerging adults aged 18-28 years. Emerging adults frequently use social media to learn and communicate about anxiety; however, we are not aware of studies that have examined whether social media, as an information source, is associated with accurate anxiety knowledge or use of adaptive coping strategies. In a sample of 250 participants, we evaluated where emerging adults seek anxiety information and the associations between source, anxiety knowledge, and coping strategies. Participants rated the internet (e.g., Wikipedia, medical websites) as their most used anxiety information source, followed by friends and family, therapy, and social media. Social media, as an information source, was associated with lower anxiety knowledge, and this effect was moderated by types of accounts followed (e.g., mental health professionals, nonprofessionals, and health organizations). Most participants reported using coping strategies suggested on social media, and social media as a source was positively associated with the use of both adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies. While social media provides immediate, accessible, and plentiful information, seeking this information on social media may not result in accurate knowledge about anxiety. Public Policy Relevance Statement Our findings highlight important nuances in the associations between social media usage and anxiety symptoms. Although anxiety information seeking on social media is common among emerging adults, more frequent information seeking is associated with lower knowledge about anxiety and indiscriminate use of coping strategies, both adaptive and maladaptive. Our findings indicate a need to promote dissemination of accurate information about anxiety on social media and aid emerging adults in discriminating between adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies.