Down the rabbit hole of sexting: How sexting behavior in dating applications influences social avoidance of people with social appearance anxiety via body surveillance and self-disillusionment

IF 8.9 1区心理学 Q1 PSYCHOLOGY, EXPERIMENTAL

Computers in Human Behavior Pub Date : 2025-08-15 DOI:10.1016/j.chb.2025.108773

Sihao Yang , Shengzhe Yang , Vincent Huang

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

While prior research has noted that online dating can influence the well-being of psychologically vulnerable populations, the specific role of sexting in this context remains underexplored. Drawing on the social compensation and enhancement hypotheses, we established a serial mediation model to examine how the well-being of people with social appearance anxiety was influenced by sexting behavior in dating applications. Using data from an online survey of 451 Chinese adults, we highlighted the chain mediation effect of sexting in dating applications, body surveillance, and self-disillusionment on the positive relationship between social appearance anxiety and social avoidance (social enhancement route). However, the findings failed to show the significant and negative effect of sexting on self-disillusionment and social avoidance (social compensation route). This study extends the existing research on the social compensation and social enhancement effects of online dating into the specific realm of sexting. It contributes valuable insights into the risks of sexting and its detrimental effects on body image and well-being in modern dating contexts.

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掉进色情短信的兔子洞：约会软件中的色情短信行为如何通过身体监控和自我幻灭影响社交外表焦虑者的社交回避

虽然之前的研究已经指出，在线约会可以影响心理脆弱人群的健康，但在这种情况下，性短信的具体作用仍未得到充分探讨。基于社会补偿和增强假设，我们建立了一个序列中介模型来研究社交外表焦虑者的幸福感如何受到约会应用中的性短信行为的影响。利用对451名中国成年人的在线调查数据，我们强调了约会应用中的性短信、身体监控和自我幻灭在社交外表焦虑和社交回避（社交增强途径）之间的正向关系中的连锁中介效应。然而，研究结果并未显示出性短信对自我幻灭和社会回避（社会补偿途径）的显著负向影响。本研究将现有关于网络约会的社会补偿和社会增强效应的研究扩展到性短信的特定领域。它为研究色情短信的风险及其在现代约会环境中对身体形象和健康的有害影响提供了有价值的见解。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Computers in Human Behavior Multiple-

CiteScore

19.10

自引率

4.00%

发文量

381

审稿时长

40 days

期刊介绍： Computers in Human Behavior is a scholarly journal that explores the psychological aspects of computer use. It covers original theoretical works, research reports, literature reviews, and software and book reviews. The journal examines both the use of computers in psychology, psychiatry, and related fields, and the psychological impact of computer use on individuals, groups, and society. Articles discuss topics such as professional practice, training, research, human development, learning, cognition, personality, and social interactions. It focuses on human interactions with computers, considering the computer as a medium through which human behaviors are shaped and expressed. Professionals interested in the psychological aspects of computer use will find this journal valuable, even with limited knowledge of computers.