A two-process view of Facebook use and relatedness need-satisfaction: Disconnection drives use, and connection rewards it.

Abstract

Does using Facebook help people to meet their relatedness needs? Study 1 shows that more frequent Facebook usage paradoxically correlates with more relatedness satisfaction (connection) and more relatedness dissatisfaction (disconnection). Study 2 supports a 2-process explanation of this finding, showing that disconnection motivates greater usage as a coping strategy, whereas connection results from greater usage. Study 3 examines the effects of depriving participants of Facebook use for 48 hr. Further supporting the 2-process view, connection decreased, but disconnection was unaffected during the deprivation period; however, those who became more disconnected during the deprivation period engaged in more Facebook use during a 2nd, unconstrained 48-hr period, whereas changes in connection did not predict later use. In Study 4, participants set a Facebook reduction goal; initial disconnection interfered with and predicted worse performance in this goal. Implications for theories of psychological needs, behavioral motives, and adaptive coping are considered.