Lower Self‐Control Is Associated With More Standard, Reputation Management, and Maladaptive Facebook Use

Abstract: Social media can help fulfill the need for belonging. Past work suggests that frequent or extreme Facebook use can engender costs to the self and relationships, such that self-control may be associated with Facebook use. Indeed, trait self-control was negatively associated with standard, reputation management, and maladaptive Facebook use (Study 1, N = 309), above extraversion, self-esteem, and perceptions of own attractiveness (Study 2, N = 527). Further, trait self-control was negatively associated with actual reputation management behavior online: people with lower (vs. higher) self-control were more likely to post written or image content of themselves vs. a book in a Facebook group (Study 2). Together, results suggest that higher self-control is associated with less Facebook use across the spectrum – standard use (e.g., posting, commenting, changing pictures), reputation management use (i.e., use to manage others’ perceptions of oneself), and maladaptive use (i.e., feeling negative affect as a result of comparisons to others online or not receiving positive feedback to one’s use).