Friendship Characteristics as Mediators of the Association between Online Communication and Adolescent Self-esteem

Abstract

1 Abstract As 85 % of Dutch adolescents use online communication it is important to know what the impact of this form of communication is. The current research investigated the effects of two forms of online communication (social media and gaming) on adolescent self-esteem, and examined whether two different forms of quantity of friendships mediate this association. A study conducted by Valkenburg and Peter (2007) concluded that direct messaging and chat can have a positive effect on well-being through friendship quality and time spend with friends. Till now no research has been conducted on whether characteristics of adolescent friendships mediate the link between online communication and specified aspects of well-being, like self-esteem. Gaming, social media, self-esteem and the friendship characteristics (number of friends and time spent with friends) were measured with questionnaires filled out by 264 adolescents (50.4% female, Mage = 10.25, Sage=. 83). A significant negative association has been found between gaming and social media and a significant positive association between gaming and self-esteem. Results show that both ways of online communication did not have a significant association with self-esteem through friendship characteristics. Therefore it is important to nuance the general view of the impact that online communication could have on adolescents’ self-esteem. More research in this area should be done, with a possible inclusion of attachment to parents, accessibility to internet and social skills.