Pathways from social media use to low self-esteem: The role of body dissatisfaction and social connectedness

Background: Social media platforms have become central to self-presentation and social interaction. However, accumulating evidence suggests that individuals who engage in heavy and passive social media use often experience lower self-esteem. This study aimed to examine how social media use was associated with self-esteem through two sequential mediating mechanisms: body satisfaction and social connectedness, thereby extending prior research that has largely focused on interpersonal comparison. Methods: Using cross-sectional data from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study (NZAVS, N = 27,838), we tested a serial mediation model in which social media use was associated with body satisfaction, social connectedness, and self-esteem. Social connectedness was conceptualized as an umbrella construct comprising perceived social support and sense of belonging. Statistical analyses were conducted using structural equation modeling to assess indirect and total effects, controlling for demographic covariates. Results: Greater social media use significantly predicted lower body satisfaction, which in turn predicted lower social connectedness. Body satisfaction and social connectedness were both significant mediators of the negative association between social media use and self-esteem. The findings highlight body dissatisfaction and social connectedness as important pathways linking social media use with self-esteem. Discussion: Findings suggest that the self-evaluative costs of intensive social media engagement may extend beyond individual comparison processes to broader experiences of interpersonal disconnection. These results align with existing evidence that body image dissatisfaction and reduced social connectedness may jointly undermine psychological well-being in digitally mediated environments. Conclusions: Interventions that promote positive body image and enhance social connectedness could mitigate the potentially harmful self-evaluative effects of heavy social media use. Future longitudinal, experimental, and cross-cultural research is needed to clarify causal directions and cultural contingencies of these associations.