Psychology Tok: Use of TikTok, Mood, and Self-Perception in a Sample of College Students

TikTok is a highly popular social media application that involves exposure to video content that is presumably personally relevant and highly engaging. Given TikTok’s rapidly increasing use, empirical attention to its association with mood, affect, and general well-being is needed, similar to what has been conducted with other popular social media applications. This study examined the association between experimentally assigned TikTok use and changes in mood, stress, boredom, and perceived connectedness to others informed by Uses and Gratifications Theory. Participants’ self-reported typical engagement with TikTok was also investigated in relation to self-perception variables such as loneliness, fear of missing out (FOMO), and life satisfaction. The sample consisted of 252 undergraduate students (ages 18 to 30; 69.8% female) who were randomly assigned to either use TikTok, use their electronic device (e.g., phone, laptop) without accessing TikTok, or have no access to an electronic device for 20 min. Participants assigned to use TikTok for 20 min reported decreased stress and lower connectedness to others after 20 min. Screen use without TikTok was associated with higher boredom than use of TikTok after 20 min and with higher stress than use of no screens. Self-reported TikTok use during daily activities was associated with self-reported fear of missing out (FOMO). The results appear to indicate potential benefits and drawbacks of TikTok use, at least for short durations, as well as point to intrapersonal variables that are associated with greater day-to-day TikTok use.