Childhood Emotional Maltreatment and Problematic Social Media Use Among Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Body Image Dissatisfaction

Preliminary evidence suggests that childhood maltreatment is associated with higher problematic social media use (PSMU). It has also been established that childhood emotional maltreatment (CEM) is associated with body image dissatisfaction (BID). However, the direct and
indirect impacts of CEM on PSMU via BID remain untested. The present study examined
these direct and indirect relationships among a sample of 385 adolescents (mean age
15.62 years, range 14–18 years). Results indicated that female adolescents had higher levels
of CEM, BID, and PSMU compared to males. Structural equation modeling indicated that
CEM was indirectly associated with PSMU via BID among males. However, only BID was
positively associated with PSMU among females. The findings are in accordance with
theoretical models suggesting that individuals’ core characteristics including early childhood
experiences and psychopathological factors are associated with different types of specific
internet-use disorders.