Online Aggressive Behavior, Self-Harm Behavior, and Social Anxiety: The Mediating Effect of Social Network Sites Addictive Tendency and the Moderating Effect of Sex

Objective Self-harm and online aggressive behavior, recognized as dual-harm behaviors, have become increasingly prevalent among college students, which is strongly related to social anxiety. Yet, the underlying mechanism remains unclear and social network sites (SNS) addictive tendency may have a mediating effect. In addition, the influence of sex requires further clarification. Methods A convenient sampling method was employed and 1,608 college students (females=1,245, 77.43%; Meanage=18.95 years) were recruited. Scales measuring social anxiety, online aggressive behavior, self-harm behavior, and SNS addictive tendency were utilized. Structural equation modelling based on Mplus was conducted to testify the mediating effect of SNS addictive tendency and Wald’s χ2 test was employed to clarify sex difference. Results Social anxiety is significantly and positively related to online aggressive behavior, self-harm behavior, and SNS addictive tendency. The mediating effect of SNS addictive tendency is tested to be significant (online aggressive behavior: β=0.13, 95% confidence intervals [CIs], 0.077–0.191; self-harm behavior: β=0.05, 95% CIs, 0.000–0.104) and sex could moderate the effect of social anxiety on SNS addictive tendency. The relation between social anxiety and SNS addictive tendency is significantly stronger among males. Conclusion The current study suggests that social anxiety could cause a higher risk of both online aggressive and self-harm behavior through SNS addictive tendency, especially among male college students. Therefore, further interventions should target assisting college students to develop interpersonal relations in the real world could be beneficial.