Social Media Use And Depression, Anxiety, And Stress In Latinos: A Correlational Study

U.S. Latinos can experience acculturative stress, and, simultaneously, an "immigrant-paradox effect" where mental health declines despite rising socio-economic status. Technology and social media might have positive effects upon stress associated with acculturation, for example, use of social networking sites could build social support. But, there is little existing research on Latino mental health with respect to social media use. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between technology use and mental health in U.S. Latinos. Cross-sectional data were collected via an online questionnaire. Four hundred and sixty-eight participants from the Los Angeles area who identified as Latino completed an anonymous online questionnaire that queried mental health status (depression, anxiety, and stress), technology and social media usage, acculturation-related information, and demographic information. Regression analyses tested the moderating effect of acculturation upon the relationship between social media use and mental health. There is no moderating effect for stress and marginally significant effects for anxiety and depression. In the latter, the regression equations predict that highly acculturated individuals will suffer the most with increasing social media use; lesser acculturated individuals will show beneficial or no impacts of social media use. It is tentatively concluded that the impact of social media use upon mental health in U. S. Latinos depends upon level of acculturation. Persons with low acculturation levels may benefit from social media use. At the same time, immersion to American culture in highly acculturated persons makes general social media use harmful.