Introduction

Social networking sites such as Instagram have provided young people with unprecedented opportunities for social comparison, and such behaviour can have implications for identity development. Although initial evidence suggests that there may be developmental differences in terms of how such behaviour informs identity development during adolescence and emerging adulthood, all previous research has been conducted in highly individualistic cultural contexts (i.e., the UK and the US).

Method

To shed further light on these possible developmental differences and to determine whether results replicate amongst young people from more collectivist cultural contexts, cross-sectional survey data were collected from 1,085 (M age = 18.87, SD = 2.57; Female = 77.8%) adolescents and emerging adults in Romania and Serbia between December 2019 and March 2020. The relationships between social comparisons of ability and opinion on Instagram and three key identity processes (i.e., commitment, in-depth exploration, and reconsideration of commitment) were then examined.

Result

Hierarchical multiple regression analyses identified significant age differences in terms of how social comparisons of ability and opinion on Instagram associated with identity commitment and in-depth exploration. Furthermore, possible cultural differences were identified in terms of how social comparisons of opinion on Instagram associated with the identity processes.

Conclusion

Overall, results suggest that whilst social comparisons on Instagram can elicit self-focus and prompt further exploration, developmental and cultural factors may influence how such behaviour informs identity development during adolescence and emerging adulthood.

中文翻译：

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比较，还是不比较？年龄在青春期和成年期调节 Instagram 上的社会比较与身份过程之间的关系

介绍

Instagram 等社交网站为年轻人提供了前所未有的社会比较机会，这种行为可能会对身份发展产生影响。尽管最初的证据表明，在这种行为如何影响青春期和成年期的身份发展方面可能存在发展差异，但之前的所有研究都是在高度个人主义的文化背景下进行的（即英国和美国）。

方法

为了进一步阐明这些可能的发育差异并确定结果是否在来自更集体主义文化背景的年轻人中重复，横断面调查数据收集自 1,085（M年龄 = 18.87，SD  = 2.57；女性 = 77.8%）青少年和2019 年 12 月至 2020 年 3 月期间罗马尼亚和塞尔维亚的新兴成年人。 然后检查了 Instagram 上能力和意见的社会比较与三个关键身份过程（即承诺、深入探索和重新考虑承诺）之间的关系。

结果

分层多元回归分析确定了在 Instagram 上能力和观点的社会比较与身份承诺和深入探索相关的显着年龄差异。此外，根据 Instagram 观点的社会比较与身份过程的关联，确定了可能的文化差异。

结论

总的来说，结果表明，虽然 Instagram 上的社会比较可以引发自我关注并促使进一步探索，但发展和文化因素可能会影响这种行为如何影响青春期和成年后的身份发展。