The Relationship between Social Network Service Use Motives and Subjective Well-Being: The Mediating Effect of Online and Offline Social Capital

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating effect of social capital on the relationship between Social Media use motives and subjective well-being. METHODS: In the study, online self-reporting surveys were conducted with Social Media users in their 20s, and data from 445 participants were used for structural equation modeling. RESULTS: The main findings of the study were as follows. First, the interpersonal motives for Social Media use had an indirect effect on subjective well-being by mediating offline bonding capital and online bonding capital. In addition, interpersonal motives had an indirect effect on subjective well-being by dual-mediating online and offline bonding capital. Second, the self-expression motive for Social Media use did not directly affect subjective well-being, but it indirectly affected subjective well-being by mediating offline bonding capital. Third, the information-seeking motive for Social Media use did not directly affect subjective well-being, but it indirectly affected subjective well-being by mediating offline bonding capital. CONCLUSION: This study identified a specific mechanism for how motives for using Social Media affect subjective well-being. Furthermore, the results of this study suggest that the effect of Social Media use on subjective well-being may differ depending on the motive for Social Media use.