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The effect of adolescents’ active social networking site use on life satisfaction: The sequential mediating roles of positive feedback and relational certainty

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Abstract

The present research tested the mediating roles of positive feedback and relational certainty in the relation between active social networking site use and life satisfaction. A survey research method was adopted in which four anonymous questionnaires, Inventory of active social networking site use, Positive Feedback Scale, Relational Certainty Scale as well as Life Satisfaction Scale, were completed by 742 senior middle school students. Results indicated that active social networking site use could not only predict life satisfaction positively through the mediating role of positive feedback, but also through the mediating role of relational certainty. The sequential mediating role of positive feedback and relational certainty could also be found in the complex mechanism of active social networking site use on life satisfaction. These results shed light on the importance of active social networking site use and positive feedback for adolescent adjustment.

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Funding

This study was funded by Major Program of National Social Science Foundation of P.R. China [project number: 11&ZD151], Foundation for Young Scholars of National Natural Science Foundation of China (Project No. 31400887), and the Special fund of Central China Normal University (Project No. CCNU15A02043).

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Author notes

  1. Shuai-Lei Lian and Xiao-Jun Sun contributed equally to the study.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Adolescent Cyberpsychology and Behavior(CCNU), Ministry of Education, Wuhan, 430079, China

    Shuai-Lei Lian, Xiao-Jun Sun, Xiu-juan Yang & Zong-Kui Zhou

  2. School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, No.152, Luoyu Road, Hongshan District, Wuhan, Hubei Province, 430079, People’s Republic of China

    Shuai-Lei Lian, Xiao-Jun Sun, Xiu-juan Yang & Zong-Kui Zhou

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  1. Shuai-Lei Lian
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Correspondence to Zong-Kui Zhou.

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Author Shuailei Lian declares that he has no conflict of interest. Author Xiaojun Sun declares that she has no conflict of interest. Author Xiujuan Yang declares that he has no conflict of interest. Author Zongkui Zhou declares that he has no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Shuai-Lei Lian and Xiao-Jun Sun should be regarded as joint first authors.

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Lian, SL., Sun, XJ., Yang, Xj. et al. The effect of adolescents’ active social networking site use on life satisfaction: The sequential mediating roles of positive feedback and relational certainty. Curr Psychol 39, 2087–2095 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-018-9882-y

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