Comparison by Default as the Unseen Cost of Passive Social Media
Abstract
Social media has rapidly become a ubiquitous feature of daily life, yet research examining its psychological consequences has yielded conflicting findings. This paper argues that the active–passive dichotomy, contrasting interactive engagement with passive consumption, offers the most robust framework for understanding when and why social media use harms or benefits well-being. Drawing on Festinger’s (1954) social comparison theory as an explanatory mechanism, we synthesise meta-analytic, longitudinal and experimental evidence to demonstrate that passive social media use (e.g., scrolling, browsing without interacting) is consistently associated with lower self-esteem, increased resentment, heightened depressive symptoms and reduced life satisfaction, mediated by upward social comparison and resentment. Conversely, active use (e.g., posting, commenting, direct messaging) is generally linked to greater social connectedness and positive affect, though not without risks. We examine key contextual moderators, age, platform characteristics, content type and individual differences, that shape these associations. The paper concludes by integrating findings into a transactional model of passive social media use, discussing clinical and public health implications, and outlining future research directions. It is argued that passive use constitutes a default mode of engagement on most platforms, creating a pervasive yet underrecognised cost to mental health that demands both individual and structural interventions.
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