No Likes – no control? Examining the role of coping deprivation and social anxiety in social media ostracism

Abstract

Feeling ostracised, that is, feeling ignored and excluded, in a social media environment causes negative affect and threatens fundamental human needs. Socially anxious people are especially fearful of social exclusion and may—if they feel ostracised—suffer even more when they do not have low-risk coping options such as using the Like button. Using the Online Ostracism tool, in a 2 (Ostracism vs. Inclusion) × 2 (Coping Deprivation vs. Control) experimental design, individuals with various social anxiety levels (N = 131) engaged in an online group task. Coping deprivation was operationalised via a disabled Like button. Compared to included participants, those who were ostracised reported significantly more threatened needs and worse mood. Needs were mostly threatened when ostracised ones encountered a disabled Like button. Social anxiety did not moderate this Ostracism × Coping interaction effect. However, the more socially anxious ostracised individuals were, the more they used the Like button.